Shine On You Crazy Diamond
by zerophelia
Summary: After getting kicked out of a bar, musician Natsu Dragneel finds himself bewitched by the blonde street artist dancing in the moonlight. How will he react when she's about to jump off a bridge into frigid water? What will we learn after he takes her back to performing arts guild Fairy Tail? Angsty Artist Guild AU. Multi-Songfic. Warning: Mental Illness & Suicidal Thoughts/Actions.
1. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V)

**_A/N: This is going to be a chaptered songfic. More information about this will be in an Author's Note following the first chapter. As such, I strongly recommend_** **** ** _that you play Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts 1-V) as you read this. If you start it now before you read the chapter it should flow through at a comfortable pace._**

 ** _Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I - V)_**

"Look, buddy, I think you've had enough. Now go walk it off." A strong grip forcefully released itself from a leather-clad shoulder, causing a pink-haired male to stumble forward onto the street. Calloused hands reached out from thick sleeves to catch himself on the black cement. _I can't believe they cut me off already. I can handle much more than that._ His inner-monologue was interrupted by the slamming of the bar door behind him. The tan young man rose to his feet, brushing bits of rock off his dark jeans. Natsu Dragneel was no stranger to being thrown out of bars, but usually he had the advantage of being more intoxicated. After all, he had only had a few shots of whiskey. It usually takes a full bottle of Fireball before he feels the burn of the liquid make it's way through his veins. Then again, maybe this time his mistake wasn't too many shot, but rather starting that fight.

He straightened his posture and ran a hand through his wild rose-colored locks. _Now which way is that hotel I checked into..._ His neck craned in every direction, looking for something familiar. His earlier search had led him on a crazy chase all through the port town of Hargeon. He hadn't bothered to figure out his location when he had stumbled upon the bar. In that moment nothing mattered except the urge to drink away yet another failure. Onyx eyes settled on the ocean in the distance. _Water... Yeah, I remember some water._

The twenty-something-year-old male shoved his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket as his worn-down, black Converse lifted his feet in the direction of the dark waves. Seconds later, his hands emerged back into the cold air with a lighter and a pack of cigarettes. He lit one up as he continued his way down the dark street. His eyes settled on the nearest streetlight. From his current position it was nothing but a small point of light in the distance, not unlike the stars that shone above him, reflecting in the dark ocean waves. With burning lungs to soothe his nerves, his thoughts wandered back through the events that led him to this port town.

Natsu sighed, his lips releasing a long cloud of smoke. He had gotten caught up chasing yet another false lead concerning his father. The old man had disappeared, leaving his young adopted son alone with no family, no future- just a scarf. It's been 14 years now and the stubborn pinkette still won't give up the mission he vowed to take up that day. He knew there had to be more to this disappearance than it seemed. Igneel was a good guy. After all, the state wouldn't allow someone to adopt a child if they seemed like the type who would just up and leave. There had to be a damn good reason he left Natsu behind.

Our hero had ended up at that bar as part of a ritual of sorts. When a lead dries up, a certain hot-headed young musician drinks until that town is dry as well. It's not his fault bars in Hargeon have low expectations for how well people handle their liquor. Of course it didn't help that one of the patrons of that particular pub heard a certain Salamander was in town and took it upon himself to impersonate our onyx-eyed friend. Natsu doesn't react well to people pretending to be something they are not, but it is worse when that person is walking around using his name to pick up chicks. Naturally, he gave the guy a broken nose, and props for how many numbers he was able to get. Maybe he would have to give it a try sometime, when he's not too busy working or looking for his dad.

Abandoning these thoughts and the shriveled butt to his cigarette, Natsu paused his pilgrimage. _Maybe there is another bar around where I can try my luck._ He searched the nearby buildings for any sign of alcohol, but no such luck. In fact, nothing looked familiar to him. It was like he had wandered into a ghost town. On one side of him stood the same ocean he had seen from back at the bar. On the other side was nothing but run down brick buildings, most of which seemed abandoned. The path ahead stretched out onto a bridge that housed the streetlight that had seemed so small before.

He didn't remember crossing a bridge during his earlier search, but most of it was a blur now. Before he could light another cigarette, the pinkette was caught off guard by a sound. Well, not _a_ sound. Sounds, plural. _Music._ He held his breath, lips clenching around the unlit cancer stick, his mind bent on trying to decipher the notes. _Why would anyone be playing music out here at three in the morning?_ But it was music, and Natsu was Natsu. Before he could think, those same sneakers pulled him straight ahead towards the bridge, following the melody.

Standing a good fifteen feet away from the start of the bridge, Natsu's body froze upon finding the source of the serenade. On the left side of the bridge against the rail stood an old boombox. Just a foot or two away, under the single street lamp, was a figure. A female on her hands and knees. It looked like she was writing or drawing something on the pavement with chalk. Natsu walked a few steps closer, trying to get a better look at the crouching woman.

Long blonde hair fell over her face as she stared down at the pavement. It was hard to tell given her position, but she looked about his age. She was covered in a strapless dress with a black bodice and a white skirt that flowed out below her chest. The hem appeared uneven, shorter in the front and longer in the back. Her feet were bare. _Is this girl insane? It's the middle of October. She has to be freezing._ The wind shifted and blew on her hair, revealing bare shoulders. Black ink stained her skin, tracing images of what Natsu assumes are constellations. Obsidian eyes fell on her face, despite the concentration in her eyes, her face seemed relaxed. Her lips were pulled together, humming along with the instrumental pouring through the boombox.

Natsu's jaw dropped slightly, his moistened cigarette tumbled to the dirty street below. His body was unable to move as the blonde threw down her chalk and rose to her feet. She rubbed her hands together in a small attempt to rid them of any lingering chalk dust. Running nimble fingers through her golden strands, the young woman made her way to the middle of the bridge, hips swaying with each step. Her arms moved to gather the air around her, as if wrapping herself in a blanket of song. A male voice began to permeate the air:

Remember when you were young, you shone like the sun.

 _Shine on you crazy diamond._

 _Now there's a look in your eyes, like black holes in the sky._

 _Shine on you crazy diamond._

Natsu couldn't peel his eyes off her figure as she began to dance. She was so graceful. The music moved her lightly at first, but before he could register it, she broke into a private ballet. There was passion in every fiber of her body. Her eyes closed as she was lost in movement and sound. Nothing could draw her back. There was a spiritual connection between mind, body, and song. His eyes lit ablaze as he traced her every move. His mind, too, sparked, attempting to decode the message her body was trying to communicate.

 _You were caught on the crossfire of childhood and stardom,_

 _Blown on the steel breeze._

 _Come on you target for faraway laughter,_

 _Come on you stranger, you legend, you martyr, and shine!_

With last word her body burst, arms reaching out towards the heavens en haut. For a moment the leather clad man grew ashamed. Watching the ecstasy emitting from her choreography was akin to seeing her naked. She was pouring herself through her adagio of movement. It felt wrong to witness such an intimate ceremony, but at the same time he didn't have it in him to look away. She was so beautiful, and her intensity was tantalizing. _She's on fire._

 _You reached for the secret too soon, you cried for the moon._

 _Shine on you crazy diamond._

 _Threatened by shadows at night, and exposed in the light._

 _Shine on you crazy diamond._

She spun around rhythmically, lost in her divine ritual. The skirt of her dress pillowed, making her appear like a top. Her head bowed in reverence, but to what he did not know. There was something supernatural about this whole scene, and it sent a chill down the boy's spine. It was as if this young woman was worshipping the moon and the stars, offering her fervent dance as a sacrifice. She was a saint and every step was a prayer.

 _Well you wore out your welcome with random precision,_

 _Rode on the steel breeze._

 _Come on you raver, you seer of visions,_

 _Come on you painter, you piper, you prisoner, and shine!_

Now her step were slow fluid they seemed to move without her control. It was as something possessed her and moved her in ways no one knew the human body could handle. She was a priestess under governance of the gods. A lifeless puppet whose joints were pulled by a string. Never had Natsu witnessed something so bewitching. But as he witnessed her dance approach it's coda, something felt off. Something was very wrong. As the lyrics gave way to the power of the saxophone, her body calmed and swayed, locked in a slow waltz with the universe. She continued this way for a moment, as if basking in the loving embrace of the night.

Without skipping a beat, she danced her way over to the rail of the bridge, looking out over the ocean for no longer than a second. In one swift moment she hoist herself up, pressing her feet into the cold steel rail. Standing, she threw her head back, her arms fell softly down by her sides, remaining open to the cosmos. She was unaware that her audience was inching closer, unable to shake his premonition. The weight on her right heel began to shift, advancing forward into nothingness.

The blonde never got the chance to take her fateful step. Her amber eyes flew open and she found herself being pulled backwards by the wrist, falling into a strong chest. Her mind flew out of its tranquil rapture and into a discord that rivaled the fading sax solo.

 ** _A/N: As I mentioned before the chapter, this is going to be a chaptered songfic. In fact, each chapter of this story will feature a song incorporated into it, either being sang by a character or played some other fashion as witnessed here. This is an artist guild AU, so everyone in Fairy Tail will be an artist of some kind and they will complete requests for their various forms of creative talent. I have been working on this story for weeks now, trying to get a good grip on what I want to do with it because I want this to be good. I hope all of you enjoyed this chapter and I hope you continue to enjoy future chapters. Please review and let me know what you think.  
If any of you were reading my first story (Belated) Nalu Fluff Week 2016, I will be updating pretty soon. There has been a lot going on that has had me more in the mood for angst than fluff. _**


	2. Disorder

**A/N: This chapter features the song Disorder by Joy Division. If you do not know this song, I recommend listening to it once or twice before you read so you can place it in the story. Unlike the first chapter, the song does not line up with the timing of the story, but the lyrics do hold significance to where they are.**

 **Disorder**

"What did you say your name was again? Luigi?"

"Lucy."

After being pulled down from the rail of the bridge, the blonde immediately began sobbing against Natsu's chest. He pulled his jacket around her small body, whispering to her that everything would be okay. Of course, he didn't know if this was true, but he would do everything in his power to make it so. His words were only met with harder sobs. He sat her down next to the boombox, silencing the music with one hand while keeping a comforting arm around her shoulder. He found her shoes and placed them gently on her feet in the hope that they would lend her whatever warmth they could offer. As he held her, his eyes momentarily flickered down to the words and images she left painted on the pavement below.

When she had finally calmed down, he offered buy her some coffee. He couldn't just leave her alone after what he witnessed. He asked if she was a local or had a traveling companion, but it seemed she was alone. Alone, and dancing in the street. Alone, and standing on the rail of a bridge. He was relieved that she spoke no desire to be left alone. There was something about this girl that he couldn't shake. If leaving her meant her soul left the world, he would stick by her side- if she let him.

"Lucy, huh? My name's Natsu. Natsu Dragneel."

After walking in silence for quite some time, he had only managed to out her first name. They eventually came across Mermaid Heel 24-Hour Diner. Their waitress- a woman with long violet hair, full bangs, and a bored expression- gave the pair a strange look, presumably noticing the blonde's tear stains along with the colored chalk streaked on the white of her dress. He ignored her piercing eyes and focused on doing whatever he could to help this strange girl.

"So what brought you to Hargeon?"

The blonde responded only with her gaze as she continued to sip her coffee. "I guess you don't feel much like talking, do ya Luce? That's okay. I'm gonna talk though. I'm told I can't shut up most of the time." Lucy just stared down at her caramel colored drink, hands grasping the mug for warmth. She worked hard to push all emotion from her face, but Natsu could see the remnants of embarrassment. He understand why. To be honest, he wasn't sure what he had witnessed. He couldn't tell if this act was a planned attempt to take her own life. It seemed almost like she had been caught up in the moment. All he knew was that she needed help. And he was going to give that to her.

"Mind if I order some food? I'm pretty hungry." Natsu flashed her a large grin. Again, she just looked at him. "Warning, I'm a messy eater. Gray usually yells at me. He's this jerk I grew up with. We fight a lot." He waved the tired waitress over to their table and continued to order nearly half the menu. The dark-haired woman clutched the handle of a butter knife sticking out of her apron pocket in frustration. For a second, Natsu wasn't sure if she was going to unleash the dull blades fury on him. Under ordinary circumstances, the dark-eyed male would have expected the blonde to react similarly to his large order. Yet, he was unsurprised to find her eyes had not left the swirling brown liquid between her hands.

"When I was thirteen he and I got into a pretty destructive fight. I mean, there was debris everywhere. We broke a couple tables and chairs. I even managed to smash my very first guitar over his head. I miss that thing. It was beautiful." For a moment, Natsu's eyes glistened, lost in the nostalgia. But Lucy remained unresponsive. With a sigh, he continued his tale. "Anyway, after I totally defeated Gray, I tripped on a beam and fell into some particularly sharp pieces of wood. That's how I ended up with a scar on my neck.

"I would show it to you, but I actually covered it with a tattoo a few years back. See?" The pinkette unwrapped his black and white scarf and gestured to the right side of his neck. Black and red ink traced out small scales covering the spot where his scar had been. "I sealed the weakness up with something much stronger: dragon scales." Natsu smiled again. This time, Lucy really took a moment to study that smile. It seemed so genuine. It stretched out to cover a third of his face, causing his eyes to squint to make room. His lips were clearly chapped from the crisp October air, and his teeth shone a bright white. It was a comforting grin, if you ignored the overly sharp canines.

Then, for just a moment, Natsu swore she was going to say something.

"I noticed you have some ink as well," The twenty-four year-old gestured to her shoulders. The chalk-stained girl craned her neck in attempt to look at her own body, not realizing she was still wearing his jacket. She turned back and took another sip of coffee before setting her mug down on the table. Her eyes refused to meet his. "Maybe some time you can tell me about them. They're constellations, right?"

"The zodiac." Natsu was surprised when she actually answered his questions. Her eyes remained on her coffee, but she had actually responded. Her voice was quiet, and still a bit hoarse from crying.

"You have a thing for stars, huh?" The annoyed waitress approached the couple, arms full with various plates of food. The blonde remained quiet while the older woman set the meals, plural, down in front of Natsu. He fought his urges to attack the feast in front of him and thanked the waitress. The woman scoffed and went to turn on the radio, sick of listening to him babble. Eyes as dark as coal fell onto Lucy in anticipation. He got her to speak once, could he get her to do it again? "Are you into astronomy or astrology?"

Her hesitation was palpable.

"Eh... Some of both... My mother-" Her voice trailed off and once again she sat emotionless. Her eyes widened, their- rather dim- light missing, seemingly glazed over. Natsu could tell that not all of her was sitting at that table. A second later Lucy returned to earth, but she kept her gaze low. "Look," she whispered, tone laced with defeat, "What you saw... I wasn't- I don't want to- I mean, I'm not-"

"It doesn't matter right now." Natsu stopped her. Right now, she didn't need to explain herself. She had been through enough. The strain in her voice proved how difficult the topic was. He wanted to keep things light. Taking a bite of his biscuits and gravy, he spoke to comfort her. "We don't need to jump into that. Lets just have a conversation."

If he had blinked, he would have missed the small upwards tug of her lips. A conversation. Her body warmed slightly by the comfort of the word. Like human beings. A few feet away, the waitress scoffed, turning up the radio just as a new song began.

I've been waiting for a guide to come and take me by the hand,

Could these sensations make me feel the pleasures of a normal man? 

"That was a pretty incredibly mural you drew back there." Natsu shoved the last of his biscuits in his mouth, moving the plate out of the way and reaching for a hefty sausage omelet. "How long have you been practicing art?"

You can do this, Lucy. It's just a small question. There's no need to think about... Before her mind could go there she answered him as hastily as she could. "About ten years."

These sensations barely interest me for another day,

I've got the spirit, lose the feeling, take the shock away.

"Sweet. That's how long I've been playing guitar." There was that smile again. So real. So kind. Are there really still people like this? "I don't know if you've heard of the Salamander, but I'm pretty well known. Well, in Magnolia I am. That's where I'm from. Where are you from?"

It's getting faster, moving faster now, it's getting out of hand,

On the tenth floor, down the back stairs, it's a no man's land,

"Uhh..." No words came out of the twenty-three year-old's mouth. A thought swam through her brain. Somewhere I never want to see again. She couldn't tell him that, though.

Lights are flashing, cars are crashing, getting frequent now,

I've got the spirit, lose the feeling, let it out somehow.

He knew there was no getting answers from her. Either she was uncomfortable talking to a stranger, or the past was too painful. Probably both. He pushed another empty plate away, this time his hands returned with a stack of pancakes. "Lucy, it's okay. I don't need to know everything about you tonight. You've clearly had it rough. Things must not have been easy for you, wherever you come from."

What means to you, what means to me, and we will meet again,

I'm watching you, I'm watching her, I'll take no pity from you friends,

Her eyes flickered up to meet his momentarily before staring at her mug again. "But if you let me, I am going to help you. And that doesn't mean going into your past to fix what was broken. Nothing can really be fixed. But scars can heal and people can move on."

Who is right, who can tell, and who gives a damn right now,

Until the spirit new sensation takes hold, then you know,

"Now, from what I can tell it seems like you're an aspiring artist." Her eyes met his again, but this time brown remained trained on onyx. "I was really... entranced... by your dancing. And you sure have a way with chalk." Her eyes flickered away just for a moment, tugging nervously on the sleeve of his jacket.

Until the spirit new sensation takes hold, then you know,

Until the spirit new sensation takes hold, then you know,

"I think you have a creative soul, Luce. So I think I can help you. Have you ever heard of an artist guild called Fairy Tail?" Her anxiety skyrocketed, fists met with the tabletop and causing various plates and cups to clatter. Chestnut eyes widened.

I've got the spirit, but lose the feeling,

I've got the spirit, but lose the feeling,

"Did you just say Fairy Tail?" 

Feeling, feeling, feeling, feeling, feeling, feeling, feeling. 

**A/N: I hope you enjoyed getting a better taste of the characters as well as a little insight into the mystery that is Lucy. Please don't count on me to update this quickly in the future, I've just had these chapters written for quite some time now. If you have any questions, feel free to ask in a review or PM me. As always, please let me know what you think and how I am doing. If you find anything you think I need to fix, let me know. I have an overwhelming need for this story to be perfect.**


	3. Wonderwall

**A/N: This chapter's song is Wonderwall by Oasis. I'm guessing most of you are familiar with it. Honestly, I hate this song because of it's reputation as the song to use if you wanna play guitar well enough to get laid. But I am proud of how I use that reputation along to my advantage. If you look it up, the song is not actually a love song. I use the true meaning of the song in this chapter, as well. You don't need to listen to the song as you read, but I recommend giving it a listen to refresh it in your mind. I hope you all enjoy Chapter 3.**

* * *

Wonderwall

 _Dear Mom,_

 _You'd never believe where I am headed to right now! Fairy Tail. The art guild I have been dying to join ever since Reedus and Lyra, my Art and Music Therapy teachers, first told me about it years ago. Reedus used to share stories about his time in the guild. They were a wild and rowdy bunch, but they cared so deeply for each other. Time was spent devoting oneself to one's art, and living without regret. Those stories made my heart hurt. Being alone all the time, I could only imagine what it was like to have a group of people who cared for you that way. It sounded to good to be true, a fantasy world within one's mind made to escape the troubles of life. But it was more than that, too. It's real, Mama. And I'm on my way there right now._

 _Anyway, I came across one of the members when I was doing more Key of the Starry Heavens street art in Hargeon. He snapped me out of one of my trances. That's the fifth one to happen since I left home. It's only been three months. This one was the worst yet, though. I almost... Well, you know. But he was so kind to me. He held me as emotions flooded my frail body, reminding me everything would be okay. No one has done that for me. Not since you. He didn't try to take me to the hospital like the last person did. I still remember pretending to go to the bathroom only to flee before having to check into that wretched place. But Natsu- he was... different. But of course, he's from Fairy Tail._

 _Hours later, and here I am on a train to Magnolia to join an art guild! Maybe I can take life by the horns and make it on my own after all. Soon I'll be getting paid to do art, just like I've always dreamed. I have to say, joining the real world is scary. Everything is much different than I had imagined during the years I spent in the mansion. That's not to say I would go back. Pardon my language, Mom, but hell no._

 _I have so many possibilities ahead of me, but that's not to say the world isn't as lonely as it was before. Maybe... Fairy Tail will change that. Maybe Natsu will change that._

 _Much love,_

 _Lucy_

The train ride from Hargeon to Magnolia was easily an eight hour journey, basically going from one side of the country to another. While Lucy had imagined spending this time getting to know the man who had saved her life just hours earlier, instead she was sitting across from what appeared to be a snoring corpse. When they had first gotten on the train Natsu mumbled a few incoherent syllables before swallowing a pill that promptly knocked him out. His travelling companion had only made out a few words, something along the lines of, "Trains... Evil... Motion sickness." On the bright side, this gave Lucy time to think.

She hadn't said very much to the pink-haired man who stopped her from jumping off a bridge the night before. Frankly, there was a myriad of thoughts running through her head, each one vying for first consideration. First, there was embarrassment. Lucy knew it looked like she had tried to kill herself back on that bridge. Even if she tried to explain that she had some kind of mental illness that caused her to blackout and wake up trying to end her life, how could she expect him to believe her? It sounds like some petty excuse for a failed suicide attempt, something to prevent worry. But it was the truth. The strange, complicated truth that has defined her life since the death of her mother.

Second, she had never talked to a stranger on her own like that. At least not any longer than asking for directions, or where she could find a bathroom. How was she supposed to gauge how normal humans interact? She knew how to talk to doctors and therapists, maybe even business associates of her father's, but beyond that she was lost. He was so friendly. Well, that was something on it's own. Surely, it had been well over ten years since the blonde had actually had a friend. Well, if she wanted to be on her own, she had to learn sometime. And now she was joining a guild. She would probably make all kinds of friends. She would just have to learn as she goes.

Oh God. I'm going to meet people. What will I tell them? She couldn't be herself. "Hey everyone, I'm that Heartfilia girl who went crazy. I can't wait to work with you!" No, she would not be a Heartfilia. Her family is gone now, and as much as that pains her, she has to move on and make her own life. Hopefully, with that life will come the mental and emotional healing she had always longed for.

Even if being herself would be easy, her anxiety skyrocketed. She knew nothing about making friends or what it takes to get close to people. Inside she felt herself a child. A lost child too afraid to utter a word, who wanted to simply curl up into a ball and sob for the remainder of her life. She hated the idea of portraying herself as some confident and put-together person, but she knew this was her only choice. You know what they say, fake it til you make it.

The sun shined through the window, pouring onto the sleeping frame of Fairy Tail's Salamander as the train finally pulled into Magnolia Station. I guess I should wake him. She stood from her seat and reaching a hand to jiggle his shoulder, but before she could touch him, something within her seemingly jolted itself from an inner slumber. Natsu's pink head leaned onto the window, a worrisome brow furrowed as soft respiration circulated through the small part of his lips. His chest rose and fell with these light breaths, toned muscles contracting beneath his grey t-shirt.

Lucy had never seen a sleeping man before. Had she ever watched another human being sleep like this before? It felt so intimate. Only a minute passed, but for the blonde time moved much slower as she allowed her worries to be squashed by the lulling of her companion's restful eupnea. The tension in his forehead appeared pensive. Deep sleep, deep dreams. The inexperienced girl had never witnessed anything so magnetic. Before she could think an autonomous finger extended itself to trace that brow.

This body reacted with soft grunt, shifting the position of his head ever so slightly. Lucy froze. What on earth could have possessed her to touch the face of a stranger? Her shoulders tensed, waiting for him to wake up and take offense, but no such action was committed. The boy remained asleep. This would be great if it wasn't time to get off the train. Finally, she completed her intended motion of giving the male a small shake. "Uh... Hello?" The boy did not respond. "Na-Natsu?" She shook him harder, but he just mumbled something incoherent, remaining in his slumber. Growing impatient, she went with the impulse that told her to punch him in the gut.

"ARGH!" He awoke with a start, hands clutching his tender stomach. "What was that?"

"What was what?" Lucy feigned innocence. Something told her maybe she shouldn't have punched someone she just met. But it worked. "The train stopped. We're here." She reached to grab what small amount of luggage she had from the overhead compartment.

"Huh? I feel like I was just suckerpunched." Natsu moved to put his jacket back on before grabbing his own overnight bag.

"That's odd." The blonde was trying desperately to hide her nervousness and obvious guilt. "So which way is the guild?"

The two moved off the train as Natsu ranted on about all the wonderful things he loved about Magnolia and Fairy Tail. The blonde listened intently, hoping to gain all possible knowledge about the place that would, hopefully, be her new home. A small part of her had to admit that there was something tantalizing about the passion felt by her savior. Yet, she pushed that thought away.

The small city she found herself in was rustic and beautiful. They passed a bustling marketplace, a charming canal with boatmen transporting goods on the water, and a gorgeous park that housed the largest Sakura tree she had ever seen.

All of this paled in comparison to the beauty that is the Kardia Cathedral. The stunning old church was the Magnolia's pride and joy. Fiore had been touched by many wars, but the ancient Kardia Cathedral withstood them all. A true testament to strength of the city. Lucy had learned about it back in the private school she attended as a child, before the death of her mother and her life as a shut-in. Without the chance to take in the full splendor of Magnolia, Lucy and Natsu had arrived at the Fairy Tail guild hall. Finally. The building was large and made of gray brick, resembling some kind of castle-pagoda hybrid. Natsu stomped out the cigarette she hadn't even noticed he'd lit before opening the grand double doors, revealing the world she had only dreamed of waiting inside.

"I'M BACK!" Natsu announced their arrival with no restraint as they stepped into the busy guild hall. Cheers greeted them, along with a few people looking at Lucy with a puzzling stare. Nothing too frightening, much to her relief. In the left corner, closest to the door, sat a giant bulletin board covered with paper. Are those all requests? In front of the large board stood a husky man, eyeing the requests while tapping a finger on his chin. His short, flowing hair was held to his head with a tribal-style headband, chest covered with a black tee sporting a small design of a skull.

Next to the board was a large wooden bar counter, behind which stood a woman with long white hair and stunning blue eyes. Although the color of her hair would suggest advanced age, the woman, dressed in a black, flowing dress, was glowing with youth and beauty. She couldn't have been but two or three years older than Lucy. The barmaid sported a smile that bordered welcoming and mischievous as she turned to face where the two entered the hall. Sitting at the bar counter was a brunette wearing nothing but a black bikini top and a pair of white shorts. In front of her were seven empty mugs of beer, and by the rate she was going, the mug in her hand would soon join that number to make eight.

On the far side, adjacent from the front doors, rested a small hallway and a set of stairs leading to the second level. The far right side of the guild housed a small stage complete with drums, a number of guitars, and a few microphones. The walls were covered in paintings and sketches. Even on a quick glance, our heroine could spot a number of canvases that matched the personal style of her former art teacher. The center of the guild was full of small tables and comfortable seats, along with the occasional sculpture. The lighting was rather low. In fact, the whole scene was reminiscent of a cafe Lucy had seen in Oshibana. This place was already one hundred times more cozy than the cold house she grew up in.

"Welcome back, Natsu. Any luck with your lead?" A middle-aged man with short purple hair and a white jacket spoke up. He was seated at one of the tables across from another man of similar age who was topped off with a strange hairdo, smoking a cigar. Both men were nursing mugs of beer. At a nearby table sat a petite bluenette sporting black shorts and a plain orange t-shirt, arguing with a large man with black hair and lots of piercings. They were joined by two other young men, who didn't seem to be enjoying the argument.

"Nah, couldn't find 'im. It's just a matter of time, though."

"Well, you found someone, haven't you?" This voice belonged to a rather attractive man with black hair and dark blue eyes. He seemed to be missing a shirt, though... He was followed by another bluenette, this one was taller with long silky hair. Her skin was as pale as snow against the long, slitted black dress that clung to her so gracefully. The two made their way from where they had been seated, leaving behind a familiar looking orange-haired male with glasses and a guitar. A number of generic looking females fluttered around him. Light shined against his reflective lenses as he took a quick glimpse at the blonde before turning his attention back to his groupies.

"Uh, yeah. This is Lucy. I met her in hargeon and she seemed like a good fit for the guild." The musician's tone had been light, a smile on his face as he introduced the girl, but this didn't last long. Teeth gritted, seething with deteste as he barked out the following question, "What's it to you, Ice Princess?" Lucy was taken aback by how quickly someone as friendly as Natsu took on the offensive. Maybe she should stay away from this topless guy...

"I was just making an observation, Flame for Brains. You wanna take this outside?" Lucy had never been in a guild before, but she wasn't sure this level of tension was normal. Punches were being thrown faster than she could blink. Bystanders started joining in, and the woman with the long blue hair and pale skin was cheering on the shirtless guy. Was any of this normal? "Rowdy" had been a generous term on Reedus-sensei's part.

"Don't worry, they do this all the time." Lucy jumped at the sound of a sweet voice in her ear. She turned to find the white-haired bartender at her side, sporting a friendly smile. "My name is Mirajane, but you can call me Mira." Mira extended a hand towards the blonde.

"I'm Lucy." Unsure of what else to say, the brown-eyed girl simply returned the handshake.

"What brings you to Fairy Tail, Lucy?" Mira's voice was so cheery, Lucy wasn't sure she had ever heard a sound like it.

"Uh... Na-Natsu saw me doing my street art in Hargeon and invited me back here." Apparently the whole guild was interested in her tale. The fighting had momentarily stopped and everyone was listening to the new girl.

"Huh. You don't look like the street art type." This comment came from the shirtless man again, his left hand clung to Natsu's shirt, while the right one was posed in a fist. Natsu took advantage of the distraction, sending the brunette to the floor with a swift sweep of his leg.

"She had sketched a beautiful chalk mural on the floor of a bridge. You guys should have seen it." Natsu had righted himself, folding his arms over his chest and grinning at the blonde with pride. Again, the switch was flipped.

"So you're a chalk artist?" The small bluenette had made her way over to the other females, curiosity gleaming through her kind smile.

"Um... Well, actually I use a number of tools, but all of my street murals are chalk. It's easier to use on concrete and it doesn't count as vandalism because it just washes away." Lucy's eyes refused to leave the floor as she spoke, making her discomfort clear to everyone. That is, everyone except...

"You should see her dance, too! She could give Vijeeter a run for his money!" Natsu boasted. His excitement caused him to miss the incoming attack from his blue-eyed rival, a fist landed square in his gut. That makes twice today. This only caused the brawl to break out once more. Lucy, however, continued to retract into herself. She had never openly discussed her art like this before. It was always something private she did to keep herself sane. Maybe I'm in over my head here... The ginger-haired man started strumming his guitar. The girls squealed upon recognition of the opening chords.

 _Today is gonna be the day_

 _That they're gonna throw it back to you_

 _By now you should've somehow_

 _Realized what you gotta do_

 _I don't believe that anybody_

 _Feels the way I do, about you now_

Mirajane just giggled. "Natsu can get a little excited. Don't worry, you'll get used to all of this in time. For now, why don't we get you a hot meal?" The pale-haired beauty wrapped an arm around Lucy's shoulder, guiding her over to the bar, easily dodging the fight.

"I'm Levy, by the way." The bluenette followed them to the bar, taking a seat next to Lucy while Mira disappeared into the kitchen. "I'm a songwriter. I work with those two, there," Levy pointed to two fighting men who had been sitting at her table before. "I know this guild seems really weird at first, but it will be home soon enough."

 _Backbeat, the word was on the street_

 _That the fire in your heart is out_

 _I'm sure you've heard it all before_

 _But you never really had a doubt_

 _I don't believe that anybody_

 _Feels the way I do about you now_

Home. The word rang in the brown-eyed woman's ears. Although she dreamed Fairy Tail could be her home, the reality of hearing it from someone else's lips stuck her hard. Could there really be such a place for me? The only home I knew was with my mother... When she died the home I had grew empty and sad. I eventually ran away from it, thinking myself cursed to be a vagabond... but now... Could this be... home?

 _And all the roads we have to walk are winding_

 _And all the lights that lead us there are blinding_

 _There are many things that I_

 _Would like to say to you but I don't know how_

"Uh... Lu?" Lucy snapped out of her own mind to face her new friend, "Are you okay? You kinda spaced out there." Levy's voice was laced with concern.

"Yeah." A small smile graced the blonde's face. "I'm fine. Just thinking." Remember, fake it til you make it.

 _Because maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me_

 _And after all, you're my wonderwall_

"You don't happen to know of any open apartments, do you?" She asked. Home.

"I know of one." The now-pantless toned man answered. The brawling appeared to be over as he and Natsu had both wandered over to the bar themselves. "My landlady owns another property that's open right now. It's on Strawberry Street, prime real estate. It even has a nice view of the canal. I can put in a good word for you." The brunette punctuated his sentence with a wink.

"Gray, pants." The bikini clad woman glued to the barstool spoke up. Sweat dripped down the attractive man's forehead as he looked down at his boxer-clad legs. "Shit." Much to his relief the pale bluenette following him around reached an arm out, offering him his shed clothing.

 _Today was gonna be the day_

 _But they'll never throw it back to you_

 _By now you should've somehow_

 _Realized what you're not to do_

 _I don't believe that anybody_

 _Feels the way I do, about you now_

"Thanks. That would be great." Lucy let a small nervous chuckle escape her as she witnessed the raven haired man's antics. No one else seemed to be bothered or embarrassed by his actions, so she was left to assume it was normal, even if it was uncomfortable. She had never seen a shirtless man before, but they didn't need to know that.

"So, Lucy, you draw, you dance... what other kinds of art do you practice?" Mirajane had returned, placing a burger down in front of the blonde. Natsu, who had taken the seat beside her, was about to protest his lack of service before the white-haired woman set a plate of buffalo chicken wings before him. He dug in eagerly.

Lucy thought about the question she was asked, wondering if she was really ready to tell these strangers all about her private hobbies. It is an art guild. "Well, I play guitar and sing sometimes. But I think my main outlet is writing. I'm not a good songwriter like Levy must be, but I write stories and things."

 _And all the roads that lead you there are winding_

 _And all the lights that light the way are blinding_

 _There are many things that I_

 _Would like to say to you but I don't know how_

"Like books!?" Levy squealed. "I'm a totally bibliophile! You gotta let me read your stuff!" The tiny woman staring at Lucy with hopeful eyes, nearly bouncing out of her chair in excitement.

"I don't know about that. I'm not very good." Levy's excitement dropped at Lucy's words, sadness pouring from her eyes. "And I've never let anyone read it before." The bluenette simply jutted out her bottom lip in response. The puppy dog routine was too much for the blonde to handle. "But I guess I'll need an editor."

"Yes!" Levy raised her arms in victory. " You're not going to regret it. Trust me. Just make sure I'm the first one to read it!" There was an unexpected amount of bossiness in that last request, but Lucy could tell it was good-hearted.

 _I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me_

 _And after all, you're my wonderwall_

"Oi, Shrimp. We never got ta finish our conversation." The tall, metal-studded man approached Levy at the bar, arms crossed in boredom. Didn't look like a conversation to me.

"Gajeel, I told you, I'm not writing you a song to play at your stupid high school reunion. I'm surprised you even wanna go. Besides, if you wanted me to go with you, all you had to do was ask." Levy saw his boredom and raised him utter annoyance.

"I told ya, I gotta go remind those Phantom Lord losers who's on top. And dammit woman, I don't want you ta come. I just wanna damn song!" A mischievous smile painted Levy's lips as the two continued their petty arguement. Lucy turned to the plate of food in front of her, reaching for the hot sandwich and taking a bite. The taste was nothing like the takeout she had been living off of for the past few months. It was delicious and comforting. Like a home cooked meal would be.

 _I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me_

 _And after all, you're my wonderwall_

Just as she was about to get lost in the taste of her burger and the warm atmosphere of the guildhall, a thought occurred to her. "Gray," Lucy turned to face the man who was in conversation just a few feet away. He met her gaze, waiting for her to continue. "That apartment you mentioned. What floor is it on?"

"I think it's ground floor." He raised an eyebrow at her strange question. "Why? Is that a problem?"

"No reason." She replied with a forced smile and sad eyes. "That's perfect."

 _I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me_

 _You're gonna be the one that saves me_

The whole guild returned to the state it had been in when they entered. People eating, drinking, conversing. Everyone was having a good time in the place that they loved. So good, in fact, that no one noticed the concerned stare a certain pink-haired musician gave Fairy Tail's newest member.

 _You're gonna be the one that saves me_

* * *

 **A/N: Okay, so it was kind of cheesy, but I am proud of this chapter overall. Anyway, I wanted to take this opportunity to give you a tastes of what kind of artists you can expect me to use in the future. Next chapter will feature a song by The Beatles, but in the future you can expect Nirvana, Mazzy Star, Brand New, The Smiths, Bloc Party, Jimi Hendrix and more. That being said, if you have any songs you want to recommend to me, I will give them a listen and see what they can inspire. Keep the reviews going and feel free to PM me.**


	4. Blackbird

**A/N: This chapter features the song Blackbird off of The Beatle's White Album. You can listen to the song at any time, but I recommend listening to it when it is being played in the story. It won't line up perfectly with where the lyrics are placed, but it will give you the feeling I am trying to create in the scene.**  
 **Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 ** _Blackbird_**

After Lucy had finished her meal at the bar that first day, Gray called up his landlady and the two of them went to meet her at the property, with Natsu of course. He clearly had a problem with leaving the blonde alone with his rival, and he wasn't the only one. The tall bluenette, a watercolor artist named Juvia, strongly protested against Lucy and Gray spending any time together. This is how Lucy gained the nickname "Love Rival".

The apartment was on the first level, as Gray had mentioned. It was kind of small, but good enough for one person. Natural wood decorated the interior, giving the whole place a cottage-like feel. This was a drastic change from the asylum-esque wing that had trapped her in her father's mansion for the past ten years. There were only two rooms. Upon first entry to the apartment there was a small living area and kitchen, a door next to the refrigerator led into the bedroom, which in turn connected to the suite's only bathroom. The fact that the apartment included furniture was enough to seal the deal. Paying the security deposit and first month's rent out of the stash of inheritance she kept hidden on her person, the blonde agreed to move in that night.

Yet, Lucy found herself hesitating upon the actual signing of the lease. Unlike all of the introductions she had experienced so far, this legal document required a last name. Being a Heartfilia was something she sorely wished to leave behind. In fact, if the landlady saw the name she may recognize it's significance and raise her rent, or worse- leak her whereabouts. Trying to appear casual in front of her new friends, she quickly scribbled the name Lucy Ashley without another thought. If any consequences came along, they certainly couldn't be worse than revealing her family name.

Making a mental note to go shopping for furnishings the next day, Lucy ushered her new guildmates out of her new home. All in all, it was hard to believe it had still been less than 24 hours since she had met Natsu. Lucy was exhausted. Though she wouldn't admit it to her savior, the amber eyed woman had not slept since the incident. She never could sleep when something like that happened. Trying to sleep only increased its chances of happening again. Sometimes she was up for days before her body was finally exhausted enough to sleep soundly, undisturbed by the secret motives of her mind.

But this? This huge change- the adventure she was embarking upon- exhausted her. Although it had been mere hours, body and mind withered under a weight that felt like days. Home free from guests, strangers, and interruptions, the weary artist fell into her mattress. As she drifted off to dreamland, the moment from the train replayed itself within the theater of her thoughts. Natsu's steady sighs settled her into dreamless sleep. 

Three sleepless nights had passed since that first siesta in her own bed. In this time, Lucy settled into her life in Magnolia. She visited the Magnolia Marketplace to buy food, household items, and various things to make her small apartment more "homey". This included a new music collection to replace the one she had left at the Heartfilia estate. Levy had come over at the blonde's request to help her put up some bookshelves. Naturally, this was a terrible task for the two to carry out on their own, what with Levy's height and Lucy's lack of home-improvement experience. Luckily Levy came as a package deal with her partners Jet and Droy, who were more than willing to do anything the tiny woman asked.

Levy then filled one of the shelves with books from her own collection, insisting her new friend accept the items as housewarming gifts. Lucy was overwhelmed by the small girl's kindness. Inviting Levy over was a huge step, one Lucy had almost backed out of a number of times before the trio arrived at her door. Although she could tell Levy was an understanding person who clearly wanted to form a friendship, Lucy hesitated. Her nerve cells bounced through her body uncontrollably at the thought of not being alone anymore. Yet, after spending the wee hours of the morning by herself, overwhelming loneliness reasserted just how important friendship could be.

Oddly, she had not heard from Natsu during this time. She had been to the guild many times for meals, deciding that was a good way to ease her way into their world, but the pinkette was nowhere to be found. Lucy desperately had to thank him, if not for saving her life, for inviting her into his. For bringing her to Fairy Tail. While in the market she had stumbled upon a small gift she felt was the perfect way to express her gratitude. A refillable lighter covered in faux, red alligator skin. To her, it looked almost like dragonhide.

I sealed the weakness up with something much stronger: dragon scales.

The third day she had gone to find him, she ended up getting her guildmark. This was when she first met the guild master, Makarov. Lucy knew he had a reputation for his loud, booming voice, yet it still caught her off guard the first time she heard it in person. However, this did not compare to the shock of finally seeing him. Makarov Dreyer was a small man, clearly of advanced age. Despite his tiny 4' 9" height, he was anything but frail. It was as if the life that exuded from the guild itself kept him strong.

Surprisingly, the man asked her no questions about her past, but merely inquired after her passions. "In Fairy Tail," he had said, "We don't care about the life you have lived, only that, from this day on, you live each day as if it's your last." With that remark he pressed the stamp to Lucy's right hand, leaving behind the image of the Fairy Tail crest to mark her as an official member. 

Lucy sat at her desk, absent-mindedly admiring the light pink symbol that graced her hand, when she heard a strange noise coming from the next room. Abandoning her open laptop, displaying the latest chapter of her novel, Lucy rose to investigate. Today she wore a dark gray shirt sporting an image of a full moon and a light pink skirt, chosen to match the symbol on her hand. Her hair was held half up and to the side by a light pink ribbon. The black combat boots on her feet completed her look.

Another noise was heard, this time clearly marking the kitchen as the intruder's location. The blonde leaned into her bedroom door, opening it just a crack to peer into the kitchen. Brown eyes widened as she saw an interloping figure make it's way closer to her bedroom door. Fight or flight was kicking in. While she learned towards the latter, there was really nowhere to flee to, and she was not climbing out a window. This left only one option.

Flinging the door open, the blonde squeezed her eyes shut as she released the fury of her grand battement.

"AGH! What the hell, Luce!?"

"Natsu?" Lucy's eyes flew open in horror of what she had just done to the one person she had wanted to thank. "Oh my God. I'm so sorry!" She reached a hand out to where the pinkette had landed on the hardwood floor, helping him back to his feet. "What are you doing here?"

"I came by to see how you were settling in. But then you go and pull some crazy martial arts on me. What the heck was that?" Natsu was rubbing his assaulted thigh through his black jeans, hoping her kick wouldn't bruise.

"Ballet..." Lucy nervously closed the few feet separating her from the freezer, grabbing a handful of ice and wrapping it in a stray kitchen towel. "How did you get in here?"

"Window was open." He answered as he reached to take the makeshift cold press from his reluctant host.

"No it wasn't." Lucy eyed him with doubt before glancing over at the now-open window. I may be crazy, but I would remember opening that. The blonde shivered at the cold October breeze pouring into her apartment.

"Oh. Right. Well..." Natsu pulled a seat from the small dining table, sitting to allow him better access to his throbbing injury. "The window opens from the outside. Now you know, huh?" Guilty as charged, a hand lifted to rub the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Why didn't you just knock at the front door?" A vein popped in the blonde's forehead. Maybe she didn't want to be alone anymore, but a normal amount of privacy would be nice.

"It was more fun this way!" Then he smiled. Oh God, he smiled. That same genuine smile from the diner. Lucy forgot all her anger as she felt her body ache to move independent of her mind once more. Her fingers itched to trace the curve of that smile.

Luckily, she maintained control of said urges. "Well, I'm sorry for kicking you, but next time use the door, okay?"

His only response was a smirk and soft whine before the pair was interrupted by the vision of a small boy climbing through her open window.

"Natsu! What's taking you so long!?" Lucy was taken aback at the sight of a small boy, probably around ten years old, standing in her kitchen. He was rather short and wore baggy dark blue jeans, skater sneakers, and an oversized, blue pullover sweatshirt with the face of a cartoon cat plastered on the front. One hand rested in the large pocket of the sweater, while the other moved to push messy azure locks out of his baby-blues. "What's with your leg?"

"She kicked me!" Natsu's tone feigned victimization.

"What a meanie!" was the child's reply.

"Excuse me?" Lucy didn't know if she was using this expression out of offense or shock. Probably both, with a bit of agitation mixed in. "Who are you?"

The boy stared at Natsu incredulously. "You didn't tell her about me!? You're just as mean as she is." Lucy scoffed at this statement. Damn kids.

"What! You never came up!" The pinkette yelled in defense before turning back to include the blonde in the conversation. "This is my little brother, Happy!"

The young child smiled brightly at his introduction. Lucy remained in shock. Half because no one had mentioned Natsu had a little brother, and half because she had no idea how to act in front of children, especially rude children.

"Oh, it's nice to meet you... Happy?" Is that even a name? The little guy giggled at her hesitation.

"My real name isn't Happy, everyone just calls me that!" Happy's face pulled together in earnest before his un-pocketed hand jutted a thumb out towards Natsu. "And this loser isn't really my older brother. He's my best friend!"

That made more sense to the female as the two boys looked absolutely nothing alike. Natsu was tan and rugged with bright hair while Happy was pale with icy blue doe-eyes and hair the color of a clear sky. Their features differed drastically as Happy appeared more like an adorable elf than something close to the athleticism of Natsu's build.

"Well, technically, we met because of one of those Big Brother, Little Brother programs. That means you gotta listen to me, kid!" Natsu abandoned the ice pack and seat, walking over to tossel the younger boy's hair. Lucy couldn't help but think about how endearing the action was.

"Whatever." Happy crossed his arms in anger. "I'm hungry! Let's go get some fish!"

"Now you're talking, buddy!" A mischievous smile slithered onto Natsu's lips as his All-Stars instinctively led the way to the fridge. "Oi, Luigi! Got any grub?" For some reason Natsu felt the need to stuff his head completely into the ice box, sniffing at the items chilling inside.

"I told you already, my name is LUCY! And get out of my fridge! I just moved in, I'm not ready for guests." Lucy wanted to jump in front of her fridge and push the two boys out of her home, but she wasn't really ready for such physical contact. Yelling would have to do.

However, Natsu simply ignored her request. "Jeez, all you have is frozen meals, don't you know how to cook?" No.

"Shut the hell up! Do you even know how to cook?" The blonde did not understand what was going on. Why was be being so rude to her? But he was being nice at the same time? Now he's laughing. Great.

"Natsu! Luigi said a curse! She really is mean! Why did you want me to meet her?" Happy thought this was the perfect opportunity to join the fun.

"MY NAME IS NOT LUIGI!" Lucy's typically emotionless face was now glowing red. Red with embarrassment, frustration, annoyance, and don't forget utter confusion.

"She looks like she is going to explode!" Natsu couldn't contain his laughter, his own face was going crimson from lack of breath.

"She looks like a luftballon!" Happy was giggling with one hand on his mouth, the other extending his pointer finger directly at her face. The boys started dancing and singing the famous Nena song, much to Lucy's torment. That's it. She was done. They can raid her fridge and eat her out of house and home for all she cared. She was not going to stand there for one more minute. Natsu had been so caught up in the fun that he almost didn't notice her leave. The dramatic slamming of the her bedroom door snapped them out of their antics.

For a moment they froze, exchanging glances as they tried to gather what had made her so mad. With a sigh, Natsu resigned himself to apologize. Maybe sneaking into someone's house and insulting them wasn't the smartest thing. He removed his phone and wallet from the pocket of his jacket, handing them to his partner in crime.

"Order some pizza, Happy. I think we owe her that much." Natsu then turned in the direction of the door, ready to eat crow.

"Aye, Sir!"

Natsu stood in front of the door for a moment, unsure of what to say. Honestly, that's just how he and Happy always were. Goofing off, having a good time. Maybe sometimes it was at another's expense, but it didn't really mean anything. Although they had just met, the pinkette was comfortable around the brown-eyed girl. He almost forgot that she barely knew him, and maybe she didn't know it was a joke. Honestly, she's so weird. He knocked on the wooden door.

"Luce? You okay?" She didn't answer. What did he expect, really? He knocked again. "Come on out, we're ordering pizza!" Maybe food could get her attention, it always got his. But the bribe failed. "Fine, if you're not coming out, I'm coming in!" Without further warning he turned the knob to reveal a pouting Lucy on her bed.

The vision affected him much more than he expected. Lucy was lying on her bed covers, facing the wall opposite the door. He couldn't help but freeze for a moment as his eyes traced the curves of her body and the pale flesh of her long legs. From there he noticed the perfect way in which that light pink skirt hugged her hips, and the way the fabric of her heather gray shirt rode up, revealing the tail of another constellation tattoo on the small of her back. Her right shoulder blade poked out towards him, compensating for the bend in her arm as it wrapped around a fluffy pillow. The static of her golden tendrils stuck to any available fabric, wisping in all directions.

The blonde turned on the bed to face him, yet he still stared. From this side he could see her small navel peaking out from under her top. Damn. His mouth was open, as he had planned to say something. He couldn't for the life of him remember what it was. Lucy sat up on the bed, pulling her top down to cover any exposed skin. This action brought our hero back to reality.

"Can I help you?" Lucy was clearly still peeved.

Oh yeah, I was gonna apologize! Natsu grinned sheepishly, again. How many times was she gonna make me do that? "Sorry 'bout that, Luce! Happy and I can get carried away in the fun sometimes."

She just replied with a confused look. Fun?

"Anyways, I know you said you didn't want guests, but we ordered some pizza for dinner. Figured I would make it up to you with a meal." The crescent on his face widened, transitioning from sheepish to genuine again.

The blonde lowered her eyes to look at the floor. If that's how they are, maybe I'm just overreacting. "You didn't have to make it up to me, Natsu." She paused, looking him in the eyes before continuing. It was his turn to be puzzled. "You already saved my life." She reminded him.

"Pizza's on the way!" Happy nonchalantly ran into her bedroom, joining the two adults. "COOL! You have a Martin Vintage Series HD-28V Dreadnought Acoustic!" His eyes locked on the guitar stand by her bathroom door. He hurried over to it, lightly caressing it's body while his fingers ghosted over the strings. Lucy couldn't help but laugh at his excitement and the care with which he handled her prized instrument.

"That's a Platinum Martin Vintage Series HD-28V Dreadnought Acoustic to you, mister!" Lucy couldn't help but smirk as she bragged about her possession. She had majorly splurged to buy this guitar, but she couldn't help it. It was so fucking beautiful. She shelled out extra benjamins for customization, dyeing the mahogany face a dark navy blue before adding a the "aging" toner. The pickguard was hand-painted to resemble the star-dense cluster NGC-884, while the rosette was styled after the zodiac wheel. The most expensive customization by far was the replacement of the traditional ivory tuning pegs with golden keys. This guitar was by far the most precious thing she owned.

She stood from her bed and crossed the room to pick the guitar up from it's stand. Balancing the instrument on her knee, she strummed her way through basic scales to show off the incredible sound.

Natsu was almost lost in the sight of the blonde handling the guitar in arabesque. Her bangs fell over her eyes as she craned her neck to supervise her own fingers moving against the strings, making special care not to drop the instrument's fragile base. His own fingers itched to pull those soft, sunny tendrils from her face.

"Wanna try it?" Lucy held her precious guitar out towards Happy.

"What!? Really?" He hesitated. " I don't think I am skilled enough to handle this baby."

The two adults couldn't help but laugh at the expression used by the ten-year-old as he reached to take the object from Lucy's hands. Happy adjusted the strap and lifted it over his head. The guitar was about half his size, but it was worth the smile threatening to split his face in two. His fingers danced on the frets, playing a few simple beginner's songs. Surprisingly, he lifted the strap from his shoulder, pushing the guitar at Natsu.

"Let's show Lucy what we've been working on!" Happy was all fired up.

"Aye, sir!" Natsu lengthened the strap, squirming to settle it over his body before strumming a bit and checking the tuning.

"Wait a second," Lucy remembered something that brought her pause. "Didn't you destroy your first guitar! I don't know if I want you touching my baby!" Lucy had her hands on her hips, looking at Natsu with what she figured was her best "mom" look. Natsu just smirked.

"Don't worry, Luce. I'll be gentle with her, I promise!" Natsu removed a pick from the attached holder, deciding to show his skill with a string-picking solo.

The brown-eyed heiress raised a brow in surprise. Sure, she knew he was Fairy Tail's Salamander, but she had never heard him play before.

"Natsu! Let's do Blackbird." Happy was impatient to show some of his own skills to the blonde. As Natsu began the opening chords, Happy moved over to the desk where he started drumming against the surface. 

_Blackbird singing in the dead of night_

 _Take these broken wings and learn to fly_

 _All your life_

 _You were only waiting for this moment to arise_

 __

The melody escaping the pinkette's lips rang pleasantly in the painter's ears. His voice was smooth and inviting, but somehow still rough. There was a slight accent to his song that was truly unique. The sound lapped at her like a flame, intense and warm. Something within the center of her chest expanded at the sound. When the chorus was finally reached, Happy joined his tiny vocals with Natsu's burning chants, making the sound resonate through the bedroom. As the music went on, Happy turned instead to whistle, mimicking the twittering of a bird that was used on the original track of the White Album. Lucy couldn't help but smile at the duo.

 _Blackbird singing in the dead of night_

 _Take these sunken eyes and learn to see_

 _All your life_

 _You were only waiting for this moment to be free_

Natsu's fingers jumped and twisted upon the frets, eyes flashing between Lucy and Happy. A famous smile graced his lips as he gauged the blonde's reaction. The newest Fairy Tail guild member did not smile easily. It had been rare so far to see any emotion on her face, save for the anger he had caused just moments ago. He decided a grin suited her much better. 

_Blackbird fly_

 _Blackbird fly_

 _Into the light of the dark black night_

When the performance ended and the pizza arrived, the reluctant hostess seemingly abandoned her previous desire for her guests to leave. The trio sat around her small kitchen table, enjoying the spicy sausage and anchovy pies along with Natsu's crazy story telling abilities. The two boys made themselves comfortable in her home, creating a mess everywhere as they ate. 

_Blackbird fly_

 _Blackbird fly_

 _Into the light of the dark black night_

As evening transition to night, Natsu suggested they all play a game. Naturally, Lucy didn't have any games, but had managed to sneak a deck of playing cards out of one of the hotels she had stayed in. Strange, considering she'd never played any card games. This appalled the pinkette, who insisted he teach the blonde poker. She failed to pick it up after a couple of hands, resigning the group to the simplicity of Go Fish. This, of course, was a game Happy excelled at. 

_Blackbird singing in the dead of night_

 _Take these broken wings and learn to fly_

 _All your life_

 _You were only waiting for this moment to arise_

Eight O'Clock rolled around, and the street-artist's lack of sleep caught up with her. She was just about to call it a night when Happy demanded they watch a movie. She didn't have many of those, but there was no way in hell she would have left the mansion without her prized Star Wars Blu Ray boxset. She flipped a lid upon finding out Natsu had failed his mentee by never exposing him to the beauty of the Lucas Films production. She didn't know much about people, but she had figured everyone had seen Star Wars by Happy's age.

Popping in A New Hope, Lucy took a seat besides Natsu on her tiny sofa. Happy exemplified his true childish spirit by sitting cross-legged on the floor, directly in front of the screen. Lucy tried to push past her exhaustion for the sake of making it through her favorite of the trilogy. Natsu watched her face intently, examining the way it would light up as new characters were introduced, or how she would mouth the lines in between yawns. As the night had progressed, Lucy continually failed to keep her guard up. Quickly, she grew comfortable having the two boys around.

 _You were only waiting for this moment to arise_

As Happy was watching the four heroes rush to escape the deadly trash compactor, Lucy cuddled up under a blanket on the loveseat. Brown eyes grew heavy, refusing to let in anymore light. Pink brows rose in surprise as Lucy's body teetered onto the onyx-eyed man, a small blonde head resting upon his shoulder. "Luce?" His whisper was met only with the response of small mewling breaths escaping through relaxed lips. Instead of waking her, Natsu encompassed an arm around her frail body, telling himself she would wake with a crick in her neck, otherwise.

The film ended, signaling time for the boys to head home and hit the hay. Happy turned the television off as Natsu lifted a sleeping Lucy off to her bed. After placing the slumbering form beneath star-covered sheets, the pinkette stood by the bed for a moment, watching as her chest rose and fell peacefully. Giving in to his previous desires, his fingers moved to place stray strands behind her ear, knuckles trailing down a soft, crimson cheek as his touch receded.

 _You were only waiting for this moment to arise_

* * *

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave me a review to let me know what you think! For the record, I do not own Fairy Tail, Blackbird or Star Wars.


	5. Whatsername

A/N: Hello everyone! I'd like to thank everyone for their favorites, follows, and positive reviews. Reviews fuel creative energy! This chapter features the song Whatsername by Green Day. Feel free to listen to it when it begins to play in the story, or whenever you would like, really. I just wanna add that I don't think this chapter features my best writing, but it is meant to mostly give you insight into Natsu's life.

 **I do want to warn you that the end of the chapter features more details concerning suicidal thoughts or actions. I have been struggling to come up with a proper rating for this story. I moved it at first from M to T because I don't intend to get very detailed, but if at any point someone feels I've pushed my limits, please let me know.**

* * *

 **Whatsername**

After tucking Lucy into bed and dropping Happy off at home, Natsu decided to head to the guild for a stiff drink. As he walked from the suburban home of Happy's foster parents back to the more central part of the city where the guild was located, his mind wandered at a pace at least twice as fast as his Chucks on the cold sidewalk. It was late- nearing midnight- but he knew the guild was still open and buzzing with the usual nightwalkers and insomniacs.

He would just have a few glasses of whiskey, clear his head, and head back home to sleep.

Turning out of the neighborhood, the onyx-eyed male stops for a moment, digging callous hands into the cold nylon-lined pockets of his heavy leather jacket. Rough fingers grasped their target, a half empty pack of Marlboro Reds and a cheap BIC lighter. Natsu palmed the lighter with his fourth and fifth fingers, taking the half empty pack between his first three. He continued to tap the small cardboard box against the lower palm of his opposite hand. The action may be useless as the pack has been opened, but the action was a ritual for him. A silent prayer to feel the burn of fire on his throat, a hope that this fire would burn away all anxiety and trouble. A wish always made in vain. But made, nonetheless.

Removing a single cigarette and pocketing the pack, Natsu takes the white stick between two fingers, moving it to his lips. In his opposite hand, his thumb jerks on a striking wheel, effectively igniting his plastic lighter. He connects the two, taking in a deep breath of the now slow-burning tobacco. He exhales a cloud of smoke with a deep sigh, stepping to continue his journey, both physical and mental.

 _Fuck_ did it feel _good_ to smoke again.

It had been three days since his last one. Custody battles were hard enough when you're barely twenty-five. He didn't want the defense to call him out for smoking, too. The odds were already against him, but that didn't mean he would give up. Happy deserved a real family, people who loved him, not the lukewarm affections of a foster family who threatens to return you to Social Services the second you get complicated. Natsu knew this well. He had lived it, and he'd be damned if his "little brother" had to live it, too.

The young musician knew becoming Happy's guardian was the right thing, but that didn't make it easy. Hell, before today, he had spent 72 hours listening to fancy lawyers and social workers trade his every characteristic for a flaw. He was too young to raise a child. He had a history of delinquency and fighting. He constantly left town for work or "personal matters". His career was "unstable." As a musician, it's assumed he would be out gallivanting with women. The worst was beyond his control: they believe that as a product of the foster system, himself, Natsu does not know how to provide the love, care, and discipline necessary to be a part of a family.

The pinkette snorted at this last thought, taking a deep drag, releasing smoke and anger through flared nostrils. Sure, he could concede to some of their accusations: he was young, he had been a troublemaker, he did leave town rather often. Fuck, they didn't even know about the nicotine addiction or his "border-on" alcoholism. He would definitely have to conquer those demons to be a suitable guardian, even in his mind. But these snooty people in suits just didn't get it.

Happy was already his family.

Happy was the younger brother he never had. His best friend, his son. No one cared more for the kid than he did, especially not his foster parents. They barely spent any time with him outside of the necessary provision of meals. They refused to help with homework, they refused to engage in family bonding activities, and refused Happy of even the small luxury of school field trips.

That was why one of Happy's teacher's put him in the "Big Brother-Little Brother" program. And so what if Natsu was only doing the program out of community service? It doesn't change the bond they share. Three years later, here they are. Natsu helps Happy with his homework. He chaperones the field trips. They spend as much time together as possible, practicing hobbies, going on day trips, and enjoying life the way they should.

But that's not it. There was still another thing these social workers didn't seem to understand. Natsu may not have blood relatives, but he has a family. A big family, filled with wonderful, supportive people from all backgrounds. Natsu was a part of Fairy Tail, and no organization in Fiore was more like a family than the famous performing arts guild. For the past three years Happy has been a part of that family, too. Welcomed with open arms from the moment Natsu introduced him to his fellow guild members. If Natsu had to leave for a job, Happy would never be alone. He would always be surrounded by people who truly cared about him and wished to see him grow.

This was more than the foster system could ever offer.

After three consecutive days in court, the judge of the hearing finally decided to give Natsu one year to prove he was capable of being an adequate guardian, then the final decision of Happy's fate could be determined. Natsu was thankful for this chance, and determined to turn his life around.

 _Tomorrow._

Tonight, he needed a cigarette. He needed a drink. Or maybe a bottle. He needed to calm his racing mind. Distract himself from the real issue plaguing him. The issue of a certain blonde who had been haunting his dreams.

With one more turn, the pinkette arrived at the guildhall. His cigarette still had some burn left in it, but he ditched it on the ashtray by the entrance. Behind these doors his throat could experience the burn of a different fire. Fire _water_ , and in Natsu's case: fire whiskey.

He wasted no time in pushing the large wooden doors open, revealing the buzzing world of Fairy Tail within. Mira was still serving drinks, Loke was still serenading women, Levy was still arguing with Gajeel, and Gray was still trying to pry Juvia off of his arm. Natsu shook his head, laughing softly. He couldn't help the grin that crawled onto his lips as he strut into the hall. All was right in the world... _somewhere_.

"MIRA! GIMME A FIREBALL!" Natsu was getting straight to business.

"Coming right up, Na-"

"SHUT UP, ASH BREATH. YOU'LL WAKE THE WHOLE TOWN." Gray interrupted.

"ISN'T THAT YOUR GOAL, ICE PRINCESS?" Natsu removed his coat, ready to throw down. It hadn't been his intent in coming here, but a good fight always helped clear his mind.

"Gray-sama, you boys may want to quiet down." Juvia allowed the lateness of the hour to overpower her urge to root on her beloved.

"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME, FLAME BRAIN?" Gray ignored her, walking over to his pink-haired guildmate.

"YOU HEARD ME, STRIPPER." Natsu took his stance.

"YOU TWO BETTER SHUT UP." This voice came from the stairs leading to the second level of the guild hall. "I'm about to go into the studio, and if you asshats ruin my recording with your pussy fighting, I'm gonna pound you both into next year."

The two men being addressed stared in fear at the beefy blonde man standing at the top of the steps. "Sorry, Laxus", they sang in unison.

Laxus replied to their submission with a simple grunt before crossing the balcony to the recording studio where the rest of The Thunder Legion awaited him. Gray and Natsu parted ways, each one muttering under their breath something about how they would have won, anyway. Natsu took a seat at the bar, where a nice glass of fire whiskey awaited him. The Salamander took a deep breath, letting his mind recover from the adrenaline rush. Unfortunately, his earlier thoughts returned as quickly as the chemical left him. Quickly, he downed the tumbler of liquid in front of him, hoping to nip them in the bud.

He couldn't let himself think about the blonde girl he had just spent the day with, at least not the way he wanted to. It was too complicated, too confusing, and too _familiar_. He wasn't allowed to think of women like that. Like _women_. No. They were friends, guildmates, _nakama_. Besides, it was much too messy. He refused to let his general concern turn into anything greater. He was too complex to develop feelings or romantic attachments. And she was...

Mira noticed his empty cup and was quick to replace the lack of liquid. Natsu nodded to the barmaid in thanks before downing the cup yet again. _Stop it_ , he told himself.

But he couldn't.

 _I can't believe I touched her like that. What the fuck is wrong with me?_ Already this new girl was messing with his head in a way he hadn't experienced in years. The image of Lucy's sleeping form was still burned into his brain. She had looked so beautiful painted with the pale moonlight, sakura lips shining with a faint blue hue from a blend of the night sky and the crisp October air.

Her _lips_ , that had appeared soft enough to touch while the colors of _A New Hope_ danced across their surface as she slept. Lips that shaped Pink Floyd poetry so passionately when he caught her dancing in the street. Those lips that refused to utter a word after he had prevented an attempt on her life. _Perfect_ lips that had only stretched into a smile only upon hearing his fingers strut across copper-wrapped nylon.

Natsu stared intently at his empty glass until the white-haired woman returned to fill it again. Again, she tilted the bottle into the glass, intending to fill it for a standard drink. Right as Mira retracts her hand to return the bottle to the shelf, Natsu stops her, gripping the bottle. "Leave it." He whispers. Mira looks warily at her troubled friend as she removes her grip from the bottle, allowing Natsu to place it on the counter beside his cup. His cup, which is emptied again one second later.

A flash of red catches his eye as the 'recording' bulb sparks on the sign next to the staircase. Natsu then remembered Laxus saying he was going into the studio. _When someone is in the studio, there is music._ He turned in his bar seat, grabbing the bottle of Fireball before hopping off the cushion and heading for the stairs. Mira watched as he walked off towards the studio, shaking her head and muttering, "Well, Natsu is Natsu." A sorrowful expression took her over as she turned to continue drying freshly washed pint glasses and tumblers.

The steady rhythm of drums and guitar picked up as Natsu opened the door to the studio. It was rather small, but it worked for the guild's purposes. The doorway opened to a small hallway leading to the mixing room. From the mixing room, one can enter the recording room. Glass windows in the hallway allowed it's occupants to peer into the recording room, with surround sound speakers filling the tiny space with the sounds of the current session. Natsu paused in front of the window, obsidian lenses tracing over the forms of The Thunder Legion.

Behind the drums sat Bixlow, the band's resident party boy. On rhythm guitar was the brilliant Freed Justine, who also wrote nearly all their songs. Continuing the legend of rocking female bassists was the elegant Evergreen, which left Laxus as the front man with lead guitar and vocals.

 _Thought I ran into you down on the street,_

 _Then it turned out to only be a dream._

Natsu fell back against the opposite wall, legs giving out and causing the boy to slide down to a sitting position. He look a long swig of Fireball, disappointed in his ability to hold his liquor. Why can't I just be drunk already? He closed his eyes, only to curse himself when the image of Lucy twirling in the moonlight flashed by. Another sip of whiskey, he squeezed them tighter to see her nervous form sitting emotionless with coffee between pale hands in a diner booth. Fuck. More whiskey, and the sadness bleeding though her eyes as she sat at the guild counter.

 _Get it together, Natsu._

 _I made a point to burn all of the photographs,_

 _She went away and then I took a different path._

He opened his eyes, refusing to blink, straining his vision into submission. Finally, he shut them tightly. This time he only saw flashes of her face. Fear, anger, annoyance- all the emotions he witnessed during their time today- and her smile. Her small, genuine smile that graced her face so infrequently. But more, her hair fallen over her eyes, her lips pursed to let in mewling breaths, and her cheeks flushed as she slept. The small way she held in her excitement and fought to keep all her emotions within.

Her melodious laugh.

 _Seems that she disappeared without a trace._

 _Did she ever marry old what's his face?_

No. That's not right. That laugh doesn't belong to her. It belongs to-

 _"Happy is yappy and just a bit snappy without his nappy!"_

That voice... It had been so long since he heard it. The sweetest sound his hears had ever beheld, saturated in sugar. So light and airy.

 _"Elf-nii-chan is the man who outran a sedan!"_

 _I remember the face but I can't recall the name._

 _Now I wonder how whatsername has been._

Natsu threw the empty whiskey bottle at the wall across from him with excessive force, cringing as it crashed into hundreds of pieces and uttering a silent prayer that it could not be heard in the studio. The prayer was short lived as curses entered his mind soon after. He cursed himself, mostly, for not getting drunk earlier. He let it go too far and now his mind has gone there again. _To that day._ To her.

It was inevitable, really.

The situation is just far too similar.

 _I made a point to burn all of the photographs._

 _She went away and then I took a different path._

"Woah, dude. This is worse than I expected."

Natsu turned his head to see Gray looking down at him from the studio doorway, a full bottle of firewhiskey in one hand, and a half-empty bottle of vodka in the other. Gray crossed the short space quickly, taking a seat next to Natsu on the floor, but careful of the sharp glass that littered the hardwood. He was only in his boxers, after all. An icy hand dropped the bottle of whiskey into the pinkette's lap. "Here," Gray muttered, "Figured you would need back up."

The scarved form just nodded, opening the bottle and taking a large sip, relishing in the burn the dry whiskey left in his throat.

"Mira send you?" Natsu heard his voice but didn't remember forming the words.

"Lucky guess." The raven-haired male chuckled and clinked his drink with Natsu's before turning serious.

"So what's going on, man?" Gray stared at the blank wall across from them, lifting the bottle of vodka to his lips. "Is it Happy?"

Natsu just sighed, shaking his head.

"Is this about Lisanna again?" Gray finally brought himself to venture that guess.

 _I remember the face but I can't recall the name._

 _Now I wonder how whatsername has been._

Natsu cringed at the sound of her name. Lisanna. It had been three whole years since he had seen her, and at least two since anyone dared to speak her name around him. It all came flooding back. The pixie cut white hair, icy blue eyes, perfectly bright smile. All the time spent together, playing pranks, late night talks, singing songs while she danced... natural and graceful.

"It's not your fault, Ashbreath."

 _It's not your fault._ Watching her have conversations with no one. Shutting herself in her room for days out of fear. Her silly rhymes. Finding her asleep outside, talking to birds and squirrels. The cuts on her arms and legs. Not to mention: the gun. 

_"It's not my fault, Natsu. They told me to." The lack of emotion in her voice was astounding as she whispered to him her secret._

 _"Who did?" He was terrified, partially because she wasn't making sense, and partially because he didn't know what would have happened if he hadn't walked in._

 _"The fairies. They call to me. 'Fairet', they say. 'Fairet! Fairet'!" She paused. "Hey, Natsu, do you think fairies have tails?"_

"You saved her life, Natsu." Gray reasoned

 _"You didn't have to make it up to me, Natsu. You already saved my life."_

The pinkette's head was spinning, not from alcohol as he wished, but from the overwhelming and vicious parallelism of his life. "Why didn't I see it earlier, Gray?" He turned wide, aching eyes to look at his dark-featured friend.

 _Remember? Whatever._

 _It seems like forever ago._

"You were in love, moron." 

_Remember? Whatever._

 _It seems like forever ago._

It's true. He had loved her. Natsu had fallen for his childhood friend, only to watch her slowly lose her grip on reality. Still, he had tried to support her. To keep her life as normal as possible, all just to be with her. But she couldn't love him. 

_The regrets are useless, in my mind._

 _She's in my head, I must confess._

Natsu and Gray sat in silence, knocking back their bottles. Natsu drank and drank in an effort to keep his mind away. Away from that night. 

_The regrets are useless, in my mind._

 _She's in my head,_

 _From so long ago._

The night he walked into her room, pale hair in stark contrast to her black t-shirt and shorts. She was trying to listen to her fairies. Cold gray metal against her lips, finger on the trigger, eyes squeezed tight. The night he ran to her, removing the firearm from her mouth and asking her what on earth she was thinking. She looked at him blankly. She was just trying to do what they told her to. 

_And in the darkest nights,_

 _If my memory serves me right,_

 _I'll never turn back time._

Before Natsu could peacefully black out, one last memory plagued his troubled mind, the memory of blue-tinted toes curling against grime-covered metal, one knee locking as the other bends ever so slightly, bracing for movement. For a step forward into the night. Into nothingness. Towards a plummeting fall into frigid waters.

The fateful step he prevented.

 _"What you saw... I wasn't- I don't want to- I mean, I'm not-"_

 _Forgetting you, but not the time.  
_

* * *

A/N: I hope I didn't confuse anyone too much. I also hope you enjoyed learning more about Natsu and what a few more of his demons are. If you have any questions, feel free to message me or post them in a review and I will get back to you. I gotta say, he sure has a type, huh?

Also, I'm curious about how many people would be able to guess what Lisanna's issue is. I tired to make it clear to those who have studied any psychology or mental illness, but please throw your guesses at me.

I appreciate all of your support.

zerOphelia


	6. Interlude: Never Going Back Again

Here is a small interlude chapter for you to set up some coming events. I am working on the next chapter, which will be much longer than any of the others, and I hope to have it up for all of you wonderful readers within a few days. This chapter features Never Going Back Again by Fleetwood Mac. There are no specific listening instructions.

* * *

 **Never Going Back Again**

 _She broke down and let me in_

Lucy jolted out of her slumber, ringtone abruptly breaking through her dreamless sleep. Seconds passed as brown orbs bounced off the surrounding four walls, blonde brows furrowed with puzzlement. Recognition calmed her tensed muscles as the fog in her mind cleared.

She was safe. She was in her bed.

In her apartment. In Magnolia.

With _Fairy Tail_. With _Natsu._

A sigh escaped her lips, praying for the time when she would awake without such confusion.

Her thoughts hadn't too much time to linger before the shrill cry of her ringtone began playing again. Mere feet away on her desk, her cell phone was buzzing uncontrollably. The familiar expression of confusion returned as she racked her brain. Her phone _never_ rang.

The blonde peeled warm blankets from her body, finding herself still dressed in yesterday's outfit. _Oh yeah, I fell asleep watching Star Wars. Natsu must've moved me._ Edges of her lips lifted slightly as she thought about her new friend, slender legs swinging from the mattress to the floor. She rose and carried herself to where the restless device waited and deadpanned. The contact information read: _Sexy Salamander._

Having just purchased this phone when she arrived in Magnolia, Lucy hadn't the chance to add any contacts. This "Sexy Salamander" must have added himself when she wasn't looking.

No matter, it was descriptive enough.

 _Made me see where I've been_

"Natsu?" She answered.

 _"'Bout time, Luigi! I've been calling you all day!"_ The pink-haired boy answered in a huff. She rolled her eyes before registering his words, "All day? What time is it?"

 _"It's nearly three in the afternoon! What, did you just wake up?"_ Shit.

"No, I- uh- lost track of time writing." _Smooth._

 _"Happy, that's my fire chicken! Don't make me come over there."_

"... Anyway, why were you trying to reach me?"

 _"Hey. Leave my food alone!"_ Natsu's distraction was clear. She tried again, "Natsu?"

 _"ICE DICK, I SWEAR TO GOD IF YOU TOUCH-"_

"Earth to Natsu!" She sweatdropped.

 _"Earth? You're too weird to be from Earth, Luce. You're probably from some creepy planet like Uranus."_ That wasn't the response she expected, but at least he wasn't distracted, anymore.

 _Been down one time_

Lucy pinched the bridge of her nose. "Can you hurry this up? I need to take a shower. Why were you calling all day?"

 _"You haven't even showered yet!? We need to be in Shirotsume by seven."_

Lucy froze.

"What?" Her reply was curt and soaked with fear.

 _"I got us a job!"_ Lucy could hear his grin through the small speaker of her smartphone. Her teeth grit together, muscles tensed, blood rushed to her ears, and she swore her heart almost stopped as she squeaked out, "Already?"

The anxiety in her voice went unmasked, she was sure he heard it.

 _"Don't be scared, Luigi! It will be fun! And easy. I promise."_ The blonde closed her eyes and nodded to no one, trying to strengthen her resolve before asking, "What is it?"

 _"The Annual First Light Cover Competition. Shirotsume hosts it every year, and Fairy Tail always sends a representative."_ His voice dripped with pride. _"Apparently it got overlooked this year, so I volunteered us. Isn't that great?"_

 _Been down two times_

 _Us?_ "Great. Yeah." Her throat felt about a centimeter wide. "... So what do we actually... you know... do?" Either he wasn't great at explaining or she was stupider than she thought.

 _"It's a song competition! Each competitor chooses a popular song to cover and whoever does the best or most creative cover wins!"_ Song? As in singing? In front of people? _"I don't know what song we're gonna do yet, but we'll figure something out."_ Natsu's tone turned dark, teeth gritted together. _"Unfortunately since neither of us play drums we're forced to bring that stripper with us."_ The mood shifted again, _"But Happy will be coming, too! Now, hurry and go shower. Meet us at the guild by five-thirty so we can get on the road."_

"Uh- Okay." _Yep. Singing. In front of people._

 _"Bye Luce!"_ The pinkette hung up without waiting for a response.

Only then did she see the the 27 missed calls and 43 text messages, all from "Sexy Salamander". Heading to the bathroom to begin getting ready, Lucy felt one syllable tear itself from her lips with a breath.

 _Fuck._

 _I'm never going back again_

Back at the guildhall, Natsu sat at his usual table with Happy and Gray.

"I can't believe you're really doing this to her, Flame Brain."

 _You don't know what it means to win_

Natsu eyed his rival, stuffing his face with Mira's special fire chicken. "What?" The word was all he could mutter, seasoned bread crumbs spilling out of his mouth, down his scarf, and onto his grey Radiohead t-shirt. Better than no shirt, like Gray.

"This is her first job. Have you ever even heard her sing before?" Gray could only manage an expression of pure disgust as he watched his bottomless guildmate eat. He reached for the glass of water in front of himself with fingers so cold, they frosted the glass.

"Well," Natsu swallowed his mouthful loudly, "No. But I know she plays guitar. Even if she doesn't sing, she can still do something- maybe just get used to being in front of a crowd. Besides, there's always bass."

 _Come down and see me again_

"No fair! I wish I could play with you guys. Why does Luigi get to have all the fun?" Happy chimed in, arms crossing in front of his chest as his lips tugged down into a frown. The men at the table smiled at their young friend's ambition.

"Don't worry buddy, you'll get your chance one day." Natsu tapped Happy with a light punch to the shoulder. "Anyway, if Macao was able to win this in the past, we're bound to place first, no matter how she sounds." A mozzarella stick from another table flew through the air and landed in Natsu's face.

"I heard that!" Macao whined.

 _Been down one time_

"You wanna go, old man?" Natsu stood from his seat, turned towards Macao's table, one eyebrow raised as he posed his challenge. Macao's son Romeo- who was a little older than Happy- sat across from his father. The boy turned in his chair, boosting himself on his knees to face the pinkette. Putting little thought into the action, Romeo's arm jerked, releasing another mozzarella stick towards his pink target. The appetizer smacked Natsu in the forehead before rolling off his nose and hitting the floor.

"Oh, Romeo," Onyx eyes narrowed as a sharp grin grew, "It is _on_."

Armed with fire chicken, Natsu launched his retaliation. Soon, the whole guild joined the ruckus. Gray pelted Natsu with ice cubes from his water glass until, with one miscalculation, one cube missed, hitting Levy by accident. Gajeel growled before bolting Gray back with _bolts_ , literal _bolts_. No one could figure where he got them.

"Oi, Metal head, iron ain't food!" Gray snapped.

"Says you!" Gajeel griped.

"Food fights are manly!" Mirajane's younger brother, Elfman, joined in. Although, the beefy man didn't seem to get the "food" part, as he was throwing fists. Loke, figuring himself a sly bastard, pulled a laser pointer from his pocket, aiming to blind his targets by shining the small device in their eyes. Even Levy engaged in the brawl, balling up scrap paper from old song lyrics and throwing them at her guildmates. Soon, no one knew exactly who they were fighting, only that they were having fun.

"WILL ALL OF YOU SHUT UP, I CAN'T DRINK WITH ALL THIS NOISE." Cana chimed in, finally ripping her lips away from a beer mug. Behind her, Mirajane laughed. The brunette's efforts were pointless. Nothing could stop a good, old fashioned Fairy Tail brawl. At least, not until... 

_Been down two times_

The guildhall doors opened, revealing their newest member. Long blonde hair pulled half up and to the side by a red bow, eyes lined dark, lips colored red. She wore a black trench coat that fell to her knees and a pair of red skinny jeans, black flats warming her feet. In her right hand she she carried a black acoustic guitar case.

"Lucy!" The whole guild sang in unison, excited to see the girl. Voices chimed from each direction as the members wished her luck for her first job.

The blonde's cheeks burned red. Never in her life had so many people been so happy to see her.

Natsu's breath caught in his chest, lifting onyx irises to trail each of her features. Sure, he had thought she was beautiful since the moment he first saw her. His mind recognized it as an indisputable fact. But dressed in the dangerous black and red attire she wore now, he never knew a person could be so _attractive_. He drew himself back from his thoughts before they could pull him in deeper.

He covered himself with a simple grin before calling to her, "Get over here, weirdo." 

_I'm never going back again_

Lucy reached her left hand to grab the handle of her case, working to balance the weight of the instrument and put a protective barrier between herself and those around her, eyes falling to the floor as she walked over to the table where Happy, Gray, and Natsu sat. She couldn't allow herself to look up. Not when _he_ was looking at her with _that smile_ again.

* * *

God, I feel like this story is moving so slow and I really apologize for that. I just really want to portray the characters as closed off and uncomfortable with sharing themselves, especially Lucy. They will eventually open up to each other but I also have a few events I want to take place before that kind of development. Namely, I want Lucy to complete her first job AND we need Lucy to meet Erza and complete a job with Team Natsu. During these times Lucy and Natsu, as well as the other characters, will learn small things about each other. The next chapter is titled Tonight, Tonight and will cover Lucy's first job: the Annual First Light Cover Competition.

If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or suggestions about this story so far please feel free to message me or review. Thanks for reading.


	7. Tonight, Tonight

Hello! Another chapter for you featuring The Smashing Pumpkins' Tonight, Tonight and Taylor Davis' Fairy Tail Theme Song violin cover. I'm sure you're all smart enough to figure out where each song goes! Enjoy!

* * *

 **Tonight, Tonight**

Lucy sat next to Happy in the back of Gray's car as the foursome made their way to Shirotsume. Led Zeppelin poured loudly through the speakers as Gray attempted to drown out Natsu's pained groans. The pinkette sat in the passenger's seat, head leaning out the open window in an effort to ward off the worst of his sickness. To Lucy's right, Happy voice battled against "Hey Hey What Can You Do", excitedly chattering away about what kinds of things Lucy could expect at this year's First Light Cover Contest.

"All of the major music guilds are usually invited to attend, but private musicians are also allowed. Rumor is that it started out as a Karaoke contest between this between Kemu Zaleon and Duke Everlue back in the 70's. Now it's much more interesting than that! There's usually about 30 contestants and prizes are awarded to the top three performers. Zaleon's son and the Duke are the judges. I wonder what groups will be there tonight. I heard Sabertooth and Lamia Scale are sending some musicians out-"

The girl listened silently as the boy continued, enthusiasm growing. White teeth scraped against red painted lips as she attempted to bite back her smile. She couldn't help but find Happy's ranting adorable. The boy knew so much about the world of guilds, and she could guess why. He loved music. His passion was far from hidden. The boy looked up to the members of Fairy Tail and itched for the day he could join the guild himself. He had a dream, and he was driven.

But she fell into this world by accident.

Until now, it hadn't quite felt real. Yet, here she was, exiting Gray's black Subaru Outback, finally arrived at the the location of her first job as a musician.

Natsu pushed open his door, limp body slumping forward onto the ground. Nobody bothered to check on him as he laid there for a moment, stabilizing himself against the solid ground. He slowly stood, frozen for just a moment before promptly running the nearest bush to empty his stomach of its contents. Gray and Happy immediately moved to the trunk, unloading the group's instruments.

Red polished fingers wrapped their way around the leather handle of the blonde's acoustic guitar case, knuckles turning white in attempt to fight back the nerves that fizzed through her body. Thick, long lashes kissed black lined eyes. Particles of argon, nitrogen, and oxygen pulled between open lips before releasing argon, nitrogen and carbon through flared nostrils. Mind: _blank._

"Coming, Luce?"

Natsu's voice broke her from her nervous rituals. Opening her eyes, Lucy saw the group of young men now twenty feet away from her. Her feet lingered for a moment before finally abandoning her rebellion. _You can do this._

The conference hall which hosted tonight's event was buzzing with people as Happy, Gray, Natsu, and Lucy stepped through the main doors. The three former immediately searched the scene for the musician sign in while the latter froze, eyes wide at the crowd before her. She didn't know how many of these people were performers or how many were going to be in the audience, but neither option really sat well with her anxiety. If they were performers, how was she, inexperienced as she is, supposed to compete against them? If they were part of the audience, how was she supposed to perform in front of them?

 _"Don't be scared."_

 _"It will be fun."_

 _Fun._ The blonde told herself. _Just fun. Nothing is riding on this. It's your first job, you're allowed to fail._ Somehow it didn't seem to make her feel much better.

"Come on, Luigi." Nervousness faded to annoyance at Happy's words. At least Natsu used her real name most of the time. _Not real name. He doesn't know who you are, Lucy Heartfi-_ Enough. She had gotten sidetracked again, and the boys were waiting for her across the room by a white foldout table.

Gray stood coolly against the exposed brick wall next to the table, while Natsu hung his whole body over it, calloused palms laying flat on either side of the sign in sheet. A short man with a balding head and a black handlebar mustache was filling out the information they gave him on the paperwork below. When Lucy finally made it over to the group, the pudgy man spoke "Alright, so it's you two boys and this" The man behind the desk cringed when he looked to blonde, " _Girl,_ here?"

Before she could choose between being offended or confused at the man's odd behavior, Natsu spoke for her, "Yeah, man, is that a problem?" There was something a bit edgy and protective to his voice that she liked.

"Well, uh, no." The man, whose name badge read "Everlue", replied, "It's just that... well... she's not much to look at, is she?"

The irritation finally hit as the blood left the tightened skin of Lucy's wrapped knuckles. That was all the hostility she was willing to show. Natsu, on the other hand, had other ideas. His hands balled into fists as he leaned further into the duke's personal space. _"What did you say about my guildmate?"_ The words left his mouth as venom.

Before Natsu could explode, Gray acted. His hand slammed on the sign in sheet, causing Everlue's body to shoot back with fear. "Fill out your damned paperwork, already."

Everlue swallowed at the men's effective intimidation tactics, "Right." He searched the page for the next box to fill out. "You said you were from Fairy Tail, correct? May I see your emblems?"

The group complied. Natsu shimmed out of his leather jacket to reveal the blood red mark just below his right shoulder. Gray's shirt was promptly removed to show the navy blue emblem on his right pectoral. To Lucy's surprise, Happy lifted the back of his shirt to reveal his own green mark in the middle of his back. Something about it seemed off though, making her doubt the authenticity of the tattoo. The blonde simply lifted her right hand, proud to show off her own symbol. The mark of Fairy Tail.

"And now," The duke spoke again after recording evidence of their guild marks, "All I need to know is what song you're going to perform and what you would like to call yourselves."

There was an awkward silence as the group of musicians looked at each other, wondering what to say.

"Don't look at me," Gray said, "I'm just helping you guys out. It's your team."

 _Team?_ Lucy didn't want to overstep any boundaries. "What do you think Natsu?"

"I don't know. I mean, I usually just go by The Salamander." His onyx eyes met her hazelnut orbs, each pair searching the other for answers.

"Luigi and the Salamander!" Happy suggested proudly. Natsu chuckled while Lucy internally blanched.

"Good idea, Happy." Natsu smiled at his friend before turning back to Everlue, "You can call us Lucy and the Salamander."

"Right," Everlue spoke with disinterest and sarcasm while copying down their new name, "Clever. And what song do you intend to perform?"

Lucy improvised, shocking her guildmates, "It's a surprise."

The duke looked at her with a half-smile of disgust. "Right... Well you're all signed in then. Your slot is at 9:30, so please be backstage by 9:15."

"YOSH! I'M ALL FIRED UP!" Natsu raised two fists in the air, one of those still attached to leather jacket, and began making his way into the room that hosted the main event. The rest of the group followed, with Gray begrudgingly left to carry Natsu's guitar.

"Get back here, Flame Brain, I'm not your maid." He mumbled after the pinkette.

"MAKE ME, SNOW QUEEN!" Natsu yelled, breaking out into a jog. Happy laughed, following right along side him.

Gray groaned, dropping the rectangular molded electric guitar case to the ground before running after his rival, "SAY THAT TO MY FACE, CHARCOAL BUTT."

 _'Charcoal butt? Good one, Gray.'_ Lucy sighed, picking up the heavy case with her free hand. She looked around her, searching for a sign or something that would lead her to where she could store the instruments, but just managed to spin herself in circles. There was no way in hell she was going to speak to Duke Everlue again-

"Lu!" She was rescued by a familiar voice. Turning to it revealed her short blue-haired friend and her tall, pierced companion. "Hey Levy." Lucy thought it appropriate to give her new friend a small smile, but Levy went right in for the hug. With full hands and hanging arms, Lucy reciprocated by lightly leaning her in head towards Levy's.

"What are you doing here?" The blonde asked, giving Gajeel a nod of acknowledgement.

"Right after you guys left I decided I wanted to see you perform! It is your first job, after all. Are you excited?"

"Yeah, excited." The artist half-lied, projecting a fake smile. Levy's eyes changed from happy to concerned at her friend's response. Before she could say anything, someone interrupted.

"LUCY, HIDE ME! NATSU AND GRAY ARE TRYING TO GET ME." Happy flew into her bosom, trying to use her body to shield himself from his attackers.

 _Now he uses my real name._

"GET BACK HERE, HAPPY!" The men yelled in unison as they approached their guild mates.

"HIDE ME!" Happy forced Lucy to turn her back to their direction before crouching down and attempting to hide behind the guitar cases at any other angle. The blonde was too confused to fight with him.

"Salamander. Ice princess." Gajeel finally spoke in acknowledgement of men who were now standing mere feet away from Lucy.

"Happy, come on. Give it back." Gray tried to reason.

"No!" The young boy replied.

Natsu sighed with resignation before talking over to where Lucy and Happy stood, crouching to Happy's level. Lucy's confusion died when she saw the lack of a scarf around Natsu's handsome shoulders. _Handsome? Come on, I don't think they're handsome_.

"Happy, I know you were just trying to play around, but the fun's over. You know those things mean a lot to me and Gray and we don't want to risk anything happening to them. Now, please give them back." Natsu's guildmates stood in shock of how parental the usually happy-go-lucky musician just sounded.

Happy seemed to catch on, as well. He stepped out from his hiding place and stretched his hands out towards his "Big Brother". In one hand was Natsu's scaley scarf, and in the other was Gray's signature cross pendant.

"I'm sorry, Natsu!" Happy lunged forward to hug the older male whilst bawling over dramatic tears.

"It's all good, buddy." Natsu smiled, tussling Happy's sky blue locks. He stood, handing Gray his possession before noticing two familiar faces. "Oh, Levy, Gajeel. When did you get here?"

"About five minutes ago." Levy answered.

"Right." Natsu seemed almost embarrassed about losing his usual boyish charm. He righted the scarf around his neck, turning to Lucy. "Oh, Luce. We should get those to the storage room so we don't have to lug them around for hours." He pointed to the guitars.

"Thanks Natsu, I didn't think of that." Lucy spoke with uncharacteristic sarcasm.

He ignored it. "Silly, Luigi." He took his case from her right hand. "Follow me."

Natsu led her past the sign-in table, turning left into a plain hallway. The second door to the left housed a number of instruments, most of them held in cubbies marked by the various time slots for tonight's event. Natsu slid his guitar case into a space labeled "9:30 PM" before motioning for Lucy to do the same.

"This way the staff can deliver our instruments backstage before we go on," Natsu explained before he turned his back to the shelf and pointed to another set of instruments on the opposite wall. "That's where they keep a bunch of miscellaneous instruments for performers to use in case they forgot something. I don't know if you know how to play anything other than guitar, but you can look through them. They might give us an idea of what to cover."

A perfectly sculpted blonde brow raised as chocolate irises glazed over the assortment of instruments before them. Lucy did know how to play something other than guitar. After all, she grew up wealthy and wealthy parents often pushed their children to learn an instrument in pursuit of becoming a more well-rounded individual. So, as many rich children before her, Lucy had grown up attending lessons to play- Ah, there it is. A violin.

The blonde reached for the string instrument, placing the case on the floor with care. She was all too aware of the pinkette's eyes tracing her movements with interest as she removed the wooden frame and bow. Lucy's chin fit snugly against the neck rest at the bottom of the instrument. She ran the bow softly over the strings to test the sound. It was tuned perfectly, sounding just as she remembered.

"Ballet and violin, huh? You're not one of those snooty rich girls, are you?" Natsu's face held a smug smile. He crossed toned arms over his chest as he waited for a response. Lucy froze before slowly lowering the instrument slowly. It was all she could do to keep her body from shuttering. Hurt and anxiety zipped through her so fast she was sure she could have just fallen to her knees right there. She wanted to be proud of the skills she had acquired growing up, but now they just reminded her that she couldn't outrun her past.

Natsu fucked up. He was just trying to make a joke but it ended up hurting the woman he was trying to help. "Shit, Luce. I'm sorry. That was uncalled for. I-" He stepped forward and warped those strong arms around her shoulders, pulling Lucy and her violin in for her second hug of the evening. He eyes widened at the closeness and warmth of his body, but her arms remained limp at her sides.

"I didn't mean it. I shouldn't say shit like that when I have no fucking clue where you come from." He unintentionally hugged her tighter. Tears formed but refused to leave her eyes. She refrained from opening her mouth, knowing they would spill if she did. "I know springing this gig on you is probably stressful, but I wouldn't have brought you if I didn't think you could handle it. I believe in you, Luce."

As soon as the words left his lips, Natsu became painfully aware of the dangerous situation he has just put himself in. He ripped his body from hers as quickly and as smoothly as he could. His eyes darted over Lucy's anxious form before falling to the floor.

The blonde took advantage of the pinkette's reverted gaze and used it to regain her composure. _I believe in you, Luce._ Her mind began to calculate as her grazed her fingers over fragile violin strings. An idea finally arose. "Natsu," she finally spoke, "How well do you know The Smashing Pumpkins?"

"Not amazingly well, but we have two hours and the internet. Why?"

For the second time in just over twenty-four hours, Lucy met Natsu with a genuine smile.

 _God, I could get used to this_ , He thought, returning the grin.

It took multiple text messages from Natsu and a call from Lucy before Gray would meet the pair in the in the storage room. He resisted at first, hoping to take a break from "Flame Brain's stupidity"- his words, not mine- but he gave in upon hearing Lucy explain the pair finally chose a song to cover. His job was relatively simple compared to the other two. With his sticks in hand, he simply listened to the song on repeat through headphones, matching his movements with the beats he heard until the rhythm flowed through him freely.

Mere feet away, Natsu sat with Lucy's acoustic guitar in hand. His phone sat on his knee, displaying the different chords he needed to memorize. Lucy stood over his shoulder, supervising his treatment of her baby, as well as helping him learn the chords. This was a song she knew well, it helped her through panic attacks in the past. Once Natsu was doing well enough to handle things on his own, Lucy stepped away to shake the dust off her violin skills. She hadn't played the string instrument since she left the mansion.

"Luce?" Natsu called to her, breaking her concentration. "What are we gonna do to make this song our own? The competition calls for a cover to be transformed, made new. We gotta find some way to shake it up."

Lucy thought hard. The song didn't have too many elements to it, there has to be something they could throw in there. It hit her. Nervously, she shared, "Well, I might have something."

"Lay it on me."

"Well, there was this one song I composed on the violin years ago. We could try to mash it into the song. It would add a little flair of originality." She tried to speak with more confidence than she felt. The only people who had heard any of her original songs had been her father's servants or her care staff. Although they liked it, she couldn't trust the opinion of anyone she paid.

After a moment Natsu smiled, "Why don't you play it for me and we'll see what we can do?"

That smile filled her with determination.

Lucy closed her eyes and pressed horsehair to catgut-cored string, producing sound in the wake of her motions. Her right arm moved with precision to form first a D, then an A, A, G, C, F, E, D, E, D, and so on as she threw herself into the bittersweet melody. Gray stopped his practice and lowered an ear bud, listening with interest. The boys sat silently as she played, amazed by the talent she held out on them. Natsu shot Gray a smug look, payback for the drummer's earlier concern that the blonde wouldn't meet the pinkette's expectations.

Lucy lowered the bow and removed her head from the neck rest, opening her eyes in anticipation for the boys' imput. Instead, applause rang out from behind her.

"Yes, that! Do that!"

Natsu and Gray's eyes fell behind the blonde and towards the door to the storage room. Lucy turned to follow their gaze, her own falling on the forms of Levy, Gajeel, and Happy standing in the doorway. The feminine bluenette had been the one who spoke up.

"Did you write that, Lu?" Levy's eyes shone with curiosity and awe.

"Uh, yeah. We're trying to find a way to spice up the cover we chose." Lucy spoke, timidly.

"Hmm," the songwriter got her serious face on, "Let's hear it."

With Levy's help, the trio was able to arrange the perfect combination of the two songs. The green eyed girl even advised Natsu and Lucy on a vocal arrangement which would allow the pair to share a duet. However, the group was interrupted at 9:10 by the event staff, coming to pick up the instruments for the 9:30 time slot. At this point the performers had been too busy forming their arrangement to actually practice the song all the way through. They would have to wing it.

The Fairy Tail members walked into the main hall together, dropping Levy, Gajeel, and Happy off in the audience with hugs and well-wishes. Natsu, Lucy, and Gray made their way backstage, instruments in hand. The previous act had just ended and were grabbing their gear to head back out. A silver-haired twenty-something year-old man noticed the next group of musicians walking up and purposefully slammed his shoulder into Gray's. "Didn't know they let just anyone compete in this thing." Behind him two men and a woman laughed. Gray rolled his eyes and kept walking.

"Who was that?" Lucy whispered.

"Lyon Vasta from Lamia's Scale. We took lessons together way back. He think's he's better than me just because he has those stupid lackey's who hang on his every word. Jackasses." Gray kept his cool, but anger flashed in his eyes.

Once they reached backstage they handed the staff their instruments so they could be plugged in. They were asked to wait until after their introduction to head out onto the stage. Lucy finally removed her trench coat, revealing a black knit sweater with a white outline of a ribcage knitted into the front. Natsu did his best to ignore the perfect way the the sweater hugged her body, or the way her outfit tonight seemed to be the opposite of the thin dress he had first found her in on the street.

Out on the stage, Kaby Melon was thanking Lyon's group for their performance before introducing the following act. "Our next group comes from the famous Fairy Tail guild. Fairy Tail musicians have won this competition three times out of the last five years, so they have some big shoes to fill here, don't they?" Something about the way he spoke made Lucy believe he was a much kinder man than Duke Everlue had been. It's a wonder the two men were able to work together to bring about this competition. "I would introduce the song they chose to play tonight, but it looks like they want to surprise us. Ladies and gentlemen, let's put our hands together for Fairy Tail's 'Lucy and the Salamander'!"

The obligatory applause of the crowd rang through Lucy's ears as she tried to compose herself. One deep breath was all she could capture before Natsu and Gray were pushing her out onto the stage. Thankfully with the lights of the stage she wasn't able to see how large the crowd was, but she knew they were there. The trio found their spots next to their instruments. Gray sat shirtless at the drums. Natsu stood stage right, lifting Lucy's custom guitar over his shoulders before adjusting his mic. Lucy took her place on stage left, watching the others dumbly before adjusting her mic at Natsu's lead and taking up the electric violin.

Natsu was first to speak to the crowd. "Hiya! I'm Natsu, that's Lucy, and back there is some idiot you don't have to worry about." Natsu stepped out of the way of a drum stick Gray attempted to toss at his head. "Cool it, Ice Princess. Anyway, we call ourselves Lucy and the Salamander. As many of you know, that's me. Tonight is our first ever performance and we have a special cover for you that features a tune originally composed by the beautiful Lucy Ashley over there." Lucy wished his compliment had made her less nervous, "So without further ado, give it up for Lucy and our cover of The Smashing Pumpkins' Tonight, Tonight."

The blonde paused a moment for the applause to calm down before lifting the violin to it's place beneath her chin. She closed her eyes as she began playing the soft melody she had showed her friends just moments earlier. It was sorrowful, for sure, and she was afraid to open her eyes and see the disappointed faces of the crowd as she put a damper on the whole night by playing something so depressing.

The whole room fell silent as she played. In the audience, people gaped at the display of classical talent. Kaby listened, trying to determine if a volin had ever been used in this competition before, failing to come up with an example. A few people closed their eyes and let the music take them, while others couldn't revert their gaze from the bow dancing on the strings.

Levy, Gajeel, and Happy stood by the front of the stage. Happy thought it sounded pretty, but couldn't find anything to think beyond that. He couldn't wait for Natsu and Gray to chime in and ramp everything up. Gajeel did his best to hide the Fairy Tail pride he felt behind his signature scowl, but let the melody pull him as he wrapped an arm around his green-eyed companion. Levy, on the other hand, was holding back tears. The simplicity of the strings and the bittersweet tune tugged at her heart. She could feel the emotion and the passion that Lucy must have experienced in her life whilst composing such a thing. She took a moment to wonder about what kind of life her new friend had lived, and how it culminated in the creation of something so sad yet so beautiful.

Behind the drums, Gray watched his new blonde friend with admiration. While she had played her song so timidly in the storage room, she now moved with such conviction. She was holding nothing back in this moment, and the raven haired male liked what he heard- and what he saw.

All he had known of her so far was that she was a bit withdrawn, much as he had been when he first joined. Of course, he had been much younger and was able to bond with his peers in time, but he could only imagine what it would be like to try to do that now. After being alone for that long. How would one take a step back towards humanity after humanity took a few hops away from him? Maybe, she sees the world the way he does. As a dark and cold place where one can only fight for survival. Of course, this was all speculation. He didn't know her story. Yet.

Gray straightened his head, realizing his cue to strike up the drums was only a moment away. Before getting in position he took a glance at Natsu. He stood there with the guitar, facing forward into the crowd. _He's not even watching her?_ Gray listened as Lucy changed course, instead of continuing the loop of her melody she merges it masterfully with the opening violin of the Smashing Pumpkins song. He picks up the rolling beat perfectly in time.

The violin died out to the movement of the drums, and Natsu's fingers moved lightly along the frets, medium guitar pick plucking each string to create the melody. Any moment now it was Lucy's time to begin singing. He closed his eyes and uttered a silent prayer that she would sing as beautifully as she danced. Later, he could try to take credit.

Time is never time at all

You can never ever leave

Without leaving a piece of youth

Her voice came timidly at first, but beautiful just the same. Like a light that began within her chest and touched all that heard her.

And our lives are forever changed

We will never be the same

The more you change the less you feel

With a breath, her words became more confident, her light shone a little brighter.

Believe, believe in me, believe

Believe

That life can change

That you're not stuck in vain

We're not the same, we're different tonight

Lucy played with the crescendo of her song, raising and lowering her volume with purpose to project the sound with perfect force.

Tonight, tonight, so bright

She let herself go within the song, she was her voice, she was the lyrics. Natsu watched her from the corner of his eye. The passion she was able to display and her ability to get lost in the performance astounded him. Music was truly an escape for her. He only hoped that she wouldn't escape too far.

Tonight, Tonight

Lucy picked herself back up with those words, violin taking it's place along her left arm as she began to play again. Now, it was Natsu's turn to sing. He allowed the violin to take over as he stopped strumming. He grabbed ahold of the mic stand in front of him, pulling the device close to his body as he let his fiery voice melt into the sound.

And you know you're never sure

But you're sure you could be right

If you held yourself up to the light

Natsu returned his hands to his guitar, creating resonance that touched every corner of the large conference room. Lucy's heart swelled at the sound. She had to fight the return of this feeling in order to continue playing, but it refused to fade.

And the embers never fade

In your city by the lake

The place where you were born

The pinkette opted to mirror Lucy's earlier crescendo-decrescendo in favor of the effect it created.

Believe, believe in me, believe

Believe

In the resolute urgency of now

As he continued, onyx eyes strained to look at the blonde-haired musai next to him. In the music, he lost his restraint, allowing the words to echo his hope. That he could actually get close enough to help her, and just maybe he wouldn't have to talk himself out of developing feelings for someone- maybe.

And if you believe there's not a chance tonight

Tonight

Tonight, so bright, tonight, tonight.

Now came the real duet: trading off lyrics. Lucy took the first line, playing violin all the while. She traded off the song's usual piece to implement more of her own tune, finding a way to fit it right in. She had been no nervous at first, but now it all came so smoothly.

We'll crucify the insincere tonight

Natsu took the next line, hoping no one could hear the matching prayer he let out with the lyrics:

We'll make things right, we'll feel it all tonight

At this point, Lucy was smiling. She was performing in front of people, and she was enjoying herself. She was having fun. She turned towards Natsu, hoping he would catch her bliss. Hoping he would receive her telepathic thank you note.

We'll find a way to offer up the night tonight

Natsu met her smile with one of his own. He now had no doubts that he had done the right thing in bringing her to the guild, to Magnolia, to his team, to this job. He had seen just how important music is to her. The escape it brings, but also now how it can keep her in the moment. Maybe this was what she needed all along.

The indescribable moments of your life tonight

When Natsu smiled, her grin doubled in size. This performance had started out so stressful, but now it brought her some kind of high. Her whole body buzzed and she felt, in this moment, happy. Dare she say, she felt normal. She sang her last line as if she really believed it.

The impossible is possible tonight

Without thinking, the pinkette turned almost full-body toward the blonde- still half-facing the crowd, but looking at her head on. His eyes remained trained on hers as he finished the last lines of their song.

Believe in me as I believe in you, tonight

Tonight, tonight, tonight, tonight

As Gray's final beat marked the end of the song, the crowd exploded into thunderous applause and whistles. Lucy and Natsu stood smiling at each other from opposite side  
of the stage, frozen in time and panting to catch their breath. They had given this performance their all, and, if the crowd's reaction meant anything, it was worth it. From behind the drums, Gray was too busy wiping sweat from his brow to notice the moment shared by his fellow performers.

A moment in which Natsu made a very dangerous promise to himself. A promise to see this mysterious blonde woman smile every single day.

A moment that passed all too soon as Kaby took the stage, ushering the trio off so he could wrap up their performance and introduce the next. As they walked backstage, Gray attacked Lucy. "You were amazing up there! Who knew you could sing like that!" The raven haired male wrapped a sweaty arm over her shoulder in a gesture that he hoped Natsu would take as pure congratulations. "Getting you to join Fairy Tail might be the only thing Flame Brain has done right."

"Oi, watch it, Snow Queen!"

Lucy unwrapped Gray's arm from her body in order to grab her coat. The unexpected closeness startled her. She left the two squabbling boys backstage as she walked back to the main area, in search of Levy, Gajeel, Happy, and some water.

Happy found her first.

"LUUUUUUUUSSSHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII! YOU'RE SO AMAZING!" The ten-year-old slammed straight into her body, wrapping his arms around her in a big hug. Levy joined the embrace. "Seriously, Lu! You got some great pipes! I'm so proud of you!"

"Uhh... Thanks guys. It was a lot of fun." Lucy hugged the two back with about half the force they exerted on her. "But you're kind of breaking me."

Levy let go immediately, "Sorry! I'm just so proud!"

Happy lingered, "Seriously, Lushi, you're so good. You're probably even better than Natsu." The young boy unwrapped one hand, stretching his pointer finger to poke the blonde in the behind, "You're butt is bigger."

The blonde paled and pushed out of Happy's embrace. "KYAA! NOT COOL."

Laughter sounded behind her. "Yeah, that's Happy for you."

Upon hearing Natsu's voice the blonde turned around with a tick in her forehead. Natsu's smile only grew to a grin. She noticed. "Maybe if he had a better role model, he wouldn't go around insulting ladies!"

"And the flame brain gets burned!" Gray joined Lucy on the opposite side of Natsu, handing her a cold water.

"So Salamander finally got himself a partner, huh?" This voice belonged to an approaching blonde man. He was about the same height as Natsu but you could tell he was a bit younger. He wore a smug look as he offered a hand out towards Lucy, "Hi there, I'm Sting."

Brown eyes flickered between the blonde man's hand and his face with caution, trying to make a decision. She couldn't find the conviction in her to form one. "I'm Lucy," she said monotone.

"So I heard," he responded, "Lucy and the Salamander, eh? Catchy name. Though, I don't know how Natsu was able to land a girl with talent _and_ beauty."

Natsu said nothing, trying to control his urge to start a fight. Sting always knew how to push his buttons. It was easy with such a cocky fucking attitude. A week or two ago, the pinkette would have beat him into the ground, but that was before his custody hearing. If he got in trouble for fighting here, while Happy was with him, it was all over. He had to exercise restraint. Gritting his teeth, he slipped, "Let's go get some air," before proceeding to the nearest exit, leaving behind a laughing Sting- the rest of the Fairy Tail gang to follow in his wake.

The group moved to follow Natsu as Lucy heard a familiar voice calling out the last word she had ever hoped to hear.

"Princess! Princess!"

 _Shit._

* * *

Yayy. Another chapter, just as I promised. I know it's a bit of a cliffhanger, but it was getting long and I felt it was a good place to stop. I probably won't do very many. I usually like my chapters to have closure. Please let me know what you think! Review or PM! Also, I am about to murder the formatting on this website because it keeps getting fucked up!


	8. Fake Plastic Trees

A/N: Welcome to the next chapter of Shine On You Crazy Diamond. This segment features the song Fake Plastic Trees by Radiohead. I had to really space out the words to make it fit the chapter, so there are no specific listening instructions. I do recommend listening to the song and understanding the atmosphere it creates and where it crescendos and diminuendos. Lyrics are bolded in this chapter because of how far I had to space them out. I didn't want them to blend in with the story, particularly other lines I have italicized.

I snuck one of my favorite How I Met Your Mother quotes in there, so props to anyone who can pick that out of the crowd.

I hope you enjoy.

* * *

 ** _Fake Plastic Trees_**

Natsu and the rest of the Fairy Tail gang continued towards the main entrance of the conference hall, leaving Lucy where she stood, eyes closed tight, wishing the voice that called her was just a that. A voice in her head. The urge to pick up and run was strong, but she knew it wouldn't do her any good.

It only took a moment for the group to realize she wasn't with them. "Are you coming, Lu?" It was levy who called after her.

Lucy forced her eyes open to face her friends. "Uh, in a minute. You guys go ahead."

Levy simply nodded, turning to follow the rest of the group on their path.

Lucy took a deep breath. Her heart beating at a pace that doubled the pace of the Radiohead cover Sabertooth's Rogue Cheney started to play.

 _ **A green plastic watering can**_

"Princess?" The voice came from behind her now, no way to ignore it. With a deep breath and a silent prayer for strength, Lucy turned to face an old friend. This particular friend was a bit taller than the artist with her short hair a deep pink, sporting a black maid's uniform with leather cuffs around her wrists.

"Virgo." It was all she could say, unsure of where to start this confrontation. After all, it had been five months since the blonde had picked up and left.

Virgo, on the other hand, had no problem getting straight to the point. "Are you okay, Princess? You disappeared after Master Jude-"

 ** _For a fake Chinese rubber plant_**

A petite yet calloused hand quickly covered the fuchsia-haired woman's lips. "Shh!" Lucy looked around at the mass amount of people in the room. Surely with the loud music they couldn't hear the pair, but she wasn't going to take the chance of anyone else discovering her. If this was going to happen, they had to find somewhere private.

Lucy gripped Virgo wrist, dragging the maid behind her out of the conference room, past the sign in table and down the hall until she found a janitor's closet. Unreadable as ever, Virgo followed, speaking only when the door shut to enclosed them in the small space, "Is it time for punishment?

 _ **In the fake plastic earth**_

Lucy ignored her. "How did you find me?" The question came out sharper than she had intended, but what else was there to ask.

Uncharacteristically, hurt flashed behind Virgo's eyes before she spoke, "I did not find you, Princess. I work here."

Perfectly sculpted blonde brows furrowed in confusion. "You work here?" _What about the Heartfilia estate?_

"Yes. I work for the Duke. I just started a month ago."

"Oh." The blonde took a step back, shoulders bumping into a shelf full of cleaning solutions. She hadn't expected this kind of news. Her eyes fell from their confident gaze to stare at a lonely mop bucket just behind Virgo's right leg.

 _ **That she bought from a rubber man**_

"After you disappeared we looked for you everywhere, but months had passed and we had to stop." Lucy curled into herself more and more with each of Virgo's words, hugging her black jacket close to her body. "With no one left at the estate there wasn't enough work for all of us. Capricorn let us go to find new jobs, deciding to look after the house and continue the search for you on his own."

The reality of Virgo's words sank in as a stale silence hung between the two. Lucy hadn't taken the time to think about what would become of her staff when she left. She was only worried about being free. She had left them all behind to worry and clean up the mess left by her father.

 ** _In a town full of rubber plans_**

"Honestly," Virgo spoke again, jolting Lucy out of her guilty thoughts. "We all began to think the worst." It was Virgo's turn to feel guilt, "With your condition..."

"I know." Lucy's voice was strong and her resolve was back. Somehow, she managed to be angry. Angry with herself for leaving them behind, but angry at them for defining her by her illness. It was anger enough to chase the guilt away. To remind her why she left in the first place. "I know. But I had to leave. It's my only chance to be free, Virgo. I need to leave the past behind."

 _ **To get rid of itself**_

Breaking character again, Virgo's voice was soft when she spoke, "I understand."

Lucy simply watched the woman she knew for so long. Virgo was always straightforward, emotionless, and monotone. _I broke her._ The young heiress took a step forward and wrapped her arms around her former maid. Virgo half-heartedly returned the embrace.

"I'm glad you're doing well, Virgo. But please... Please, don't tell Capricorn you saw me."

"But Princess-"

"Please," Lucy retreated just enough to hold the pinkette at arm's length, looking into her blue eyes. "Promise me, Virgo. No one can know where I am."

"Can I, at the very least, tell him you're alive?"

 ** _It wears her out_**

Lucy thought hard. Maybe knowing she's alive and doing fine would be enough to ease the old man's worries. It would be a kind gesture, but not one she could make. Because in the back of her mind a voice told her he didn't deserve it. _He has no faith in you. He doesn't think you can manage on your own. If he knows you're alive he will try to find you, and you know what he will do then. You can't go back._

"No. If he believes it, it's true. Lucy Heartfilia is dead."

 _ **It wears her out**_

Just then, the door to their hiding place was torn open, light pouring into the small space, making the two women squint as their pupils worked to adjust. The first thing they registered was laughter, both male and female.

"Oh, I'm sorry I didn't know this space was occupied."

Lucy's eyes finally settled on the form of the blonde man who had spoken so rudely to her and Natsu just moments earlier. Behind him was a beautiful woman with long, curly blonde hair. Her too-high heels made her just an inch or so taller than the man who she clung too, and her face was flushed with obvious intoxication.

Her first thought was simple. _They sell alcohol at this thing?_

Her second was to observe the position she and Virgo were in, standing mere inches apart with Lucy's arms clutching the taller woman's shoulders. Virgo's arms lightly grasped just above the blonde's waist.

Lucy tore herself away from the other woman to confront the man who interrupted her, "What the hell are you talking about?"

Sting smirked, "Now I see why Natsu was so upset. He finally got a beautiful partner, but she plays for the other team."

"That's not what's going on here, asshole." Lucy defended.

"Princess, do you need me to provide punishment?" Virgo asked her former mistress.

"Punishment, eh? I got here just in time for things to get kinky." Sting's companion giggled sloppily at the man's statement.

 _ **It wears her out**_

Lucy had no patience for this man, and Virgo wasn't helping. Blonde tendrils fell over her face as she pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh. It took a moment for her to collect her thoughts. She decided she would try to reason with him.

"Look, I'm having a very stressful night. Now, I don't know what you thought you saw, but I think you misread the situation. If you would kindly not mention this to anyone, I would greatly appreciate it." She did her best to appear reasonable and kind instead of completely exasperated.

"Alright. No problem." Sting appeared reasonable for a moment, dawning a serious expression before his signature smirk reappeared. "No need for punishment, Princess."

She doesn't really know why she did it, but it really appeared she had a hard time controlling these urges since she left the mansion. One thing is for sure, the girlish scream that left his mouth as the tip of her flat made contact with his balls was an incredibly satisfying sound.

Virgo's eyes lit with excitement.

Sting's eyes stung with tears.

The unnamed blonde's eyes shone with horror.

Lucy's eyes widened in fear as she took off down the hallway, rushing to exit the building.

 _ **It wears her out**_

After leaving Lucy back by the main event, the rest of the Fairy Tail group continued back towards the front doors, stepping out into the crisp fall air. Gray immediately reached into his pocket and retrieved a pack of cigarettes. He placed one between his lips and continued to light it, unaware of the pained glare Natsu shot his way. Before pocketing the tobacco product, Gray held the pack out to Natsu.

"Want one?"

 _ **She lives with a broken man**_

Natsu froze. Why did this night have to taunt me so? _First Sting's ugly, punchable mug shows up and now this._ Today he was supposed to stop, right? That was the deal he made last night when he was trying to get drunk. _Wow, that sounds bad._

"Nah, man." He heard himself say it but he was still surprised he managed to get the words out. "Thanks."

 _ **A cracked polystyrene man**_

Gray shrugged indifferently before going to pocket the items. An action that was cancelled when he found himself without pants.

"Fuck, not again." He frantically began to search the surrounding area for his pants. However, Happy had found them just seconds after they were discarded and decided they could serve a greater purpose.

"Look, everyone, I'm a ninja!" Happy had wrapped one leg around his neck and the other around his head.

Levy giggled at the boy's playfulness, while Gajeel did his best to suppress his amused smirk.

"Hey, give those back!" Gray called after the bluenette as he began running around the front parking area, jumping and hiding, practicing his ninja ways.

"Why bother? You're just gonna remove them again, Stripper." Natsu's reaction was to wrap his scarf around his head in a similar fashion to Happy's placement of Gray's pants. He rushed to join his "little brother" in his fun. "We are ninjas!"

 ** _Who just crumbles and burns_**

"Stupid Flamebrain." Gray muttered, crossing his arms in a publicly rare display of childish behavior. Levy giggled again.

"Oh, let him have his fun. You know he's going through a lot right now. If playing ninjas with Happy keeps him away from cigarettes and fighting, I say let him."

"Shrimp has a point." Gajeel grunted.

"Oi, who you callin' a shrimp, you big brute!" Small hands clenched murderously at Levy's sides before said fists moved to barrel continuously into Gajeel's pectorals. It was as high as she could reach. "You call me shrimp one more time and I swear I will never write you another song!"

 _ **He used to do surgery**_

"Still going with that old threat, Levy?" Gray butt in, exhaling a mixture of 4,000 poisonous chemicals and compounds.

Only to become the object of the small girl's ire, "Oh, put a sock in it, Boxer Breath!"

"Heh. I like seeing you all riled up like this, Lev." Gajeel immediately shut her up by wrapping a large arm around her small shoulders, forcing her cheeks to turn crimson. Levy opted to change the subject, shrugging out of the larger male's embrace.

 _ **For girls in the eighties**_

"You did a great job out there, Gray. Not all drummers can learn on the spot like that and pull it off." She complimented.

"Jet certainly couldn't" Gajeel commented, earning an elbow to the thigh. He was lucky she hadn't aimed a few inches to the right.

"Not all drummers were trained by Ur's crazy tactics." The raven haired man smirked, remembering the woman's determination that he develop such a talent.

"I think she would be proud of you, then." Levy offered.

 _ **But gravity always wins**_

Too much personal talk made Gray uncomfortable. "Yeah, well, Lucy was the real show stealer tonight. I was told she could play guitar, but I certainly hadn't expected that."

"Yeah, Lu was amazing. I wonder where she trained. She doesn't talk about that stuff a lot." Levy's eyes, which at lit up upon first remembering her friend's performance, now locked on the pavement below her feet.

 _ **And it wears him out**_

"You don't know? I thought you too had gotten close." Gray was careful to release his carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, nicotine and who knows what else in a direction opposite of his guildmates.

"Lucy isn't the most open or talkative person. I think she is still getting comfortable with all of us. I was just proud of her for performing tonight. She only moved to Magnolia a week ago."

A simple "Yeah..." was all that escapes Gray's lips as he turned Levy's analysis over in his brain.

"Gray," She spoke, gaining the cool-skinned man's attention, "I wouldn't push anything on her so soon. She's obviously dealing with something. Let her take her time."

 _ **It wears him out**_

"I don't get what you mean." He countered, looking as nonchalant as ever as he stamped his cigarette out on an ashtray by the front door.

It was at that moment that said door flew open and the topic of their conversation came barreling through. Gray swiftly threw himself out of the the door's path, landing on a patch of deep brown wood chips spotted with pansies.

 _ **It wears him out**_

"Lucy?" The blue-haired female called after her.

Lucy didn't stop to apologize to the figure she almost hit with the doors, nor did she cease her running when she registered Levy's voice. She wouldn't stop until she reached Gray's Outback, leaning her head back against the cool surface, breathing ragged and strained.

 _I can't believe I did that. I kicked someone I barely know!_

Well, he was being a jerk.

In the distance, she listened as Sting pushed his way through the doors she had ran out of just a moment earlier, "Where's that bitch?" She heard him ask Levy and Gajeel.

 _ **It wears him-**_

"What did you say?" It was Gray's voice that answered.

"That new girl. Where did she go?" Sting asked again with slightly less ire.

"Her name is Lucy." The words were hard to make out, obviously being spoken through clenched teeth. "And why the fuck do you wanna know, eh?"

"That bitch just kicked me in the balls!"

The snort of amusement undeniably belonged to Gajeel.

"Well, I'm sure you deserved it. Now why don't you go back inside before I rough you up even worse. Natsu may be controlling himself tonight, but that doesn't mean the rest of us have to."

Lucy peered out from behind the vehicle to catch a glimpse of Gray nose to nose with Sting, a cold fist stealing warmth from the sleeve of Sting's black tank top.

 _Seriously, it's October, what kind of guy wears a tank top and elbow length gloves?_

One that deserves to be kicked in the balls.

"Whatever, Fairy Tail Fly." Sting pushed himself out of Gray's grip. "I'm gonna go watch Rogue win this little contest."

 _ **She looks like the real thing**_

Red painted fingers supported the blonde girl's weight as she lowered herself to the asphalt, letting out a breath she didn't know she was holding when the doors closed behind Sting. Gray and Levy immediately turned to find her poking out from behind the Outback, Gajeel following behind them as they made their approach.

"Are you okay, Lu?" Levy lowered herself beside the blonde, looking her over for any signs of struggle or conflict.

"What did that bastard do to you, Lucy?" Gray asked, still carrying his anger.

 _ **She tastes like the real thing**_

Lucy looked to Levy and then up towards Gray. These new friends had just protected her. Gray had offered to fight for her sake without any knowledge of why he would be doing so. She had no doubt that Levy would have offered Sting the same deal if she had needed to.

 _Why would they do that for me? We just met._

"I'm fine," Lucy finally returned, knowing she meant the words only physically. Her conversation with Virgo would plague her for a while.

 _Lucy Heartfilia is dead._

 ** _My fake plastic love_**

"I'm fine." She said again, shutting her eyes tight to push back the tears that threatened to betray her words. She opened them again only to push herself back up to her feet.

"What happened?" Levy was curious, now that it was clear her friend had not been hurt.

"Nothing." Lucy tried to cover quickly, and failed. "Well, he was just being a jerk, and I still had some adrenaline from performing and- and-" She couldn't find a way to excuse her urge.

"Yeah, that sounds like Sting," Gray chuckled ever so lightly, "Don't worry. I'm sure he deserved it. He pretty much always deserves a swift kick to the nads, cocky bastard."

"Who deserves a kick in the shorts?" Natsu interrupted, coming from behind a nearby car. Happy followed after him, both young men both still dressed in their ninja garb.

 _ **But I can't help the feeling**_

Gray turned to face Natsu, still sporting his smirk, "Lucy here had an interesting encounter with your friend, Sting." He stated plainly.

Darkness took over Natsu's features. "What did that little fucker do this time?" The light reclaimed him a moment later when he realized he had just cussed in front of the young boy he was hoping to set an example for. _Shit._ "I mean, what did that _jerk_ do this time?" He shot a sideways glance towards Happy, satisfied to see the boy occupying himself with a rather large stick, completely oblivious to the conversations of his older companions. Natsu refixed his gaze on Lucy, settling his scarf to rest about his neck.

 _ **I could blow through the ceiling**_

Lucy gulped, embarrassed by her actions and cheeks growing hot at the thought of having to admit them to Natsu. Her eyes stayed fixed on the tire of the Hyundai Accent that was parked next to where they stood. "Um... Sting was annoying me so I... Sort of.. Um... Kicked him..."

"BUNNY GIRL KICKED THAT LIGHTBLUB IN THE BALLS." Gajeel blurted.

 _Bunny Girl?_

A green light sparked in obsidian eyes as pale pink lips erupted into elated and cacophonous laughter. The pinkette clutched his side, fighting to keep standing as he folded into himself.

 _ **If I just turn and run**_

Lucy sweatdropped at the immediate reaction, as well as her new, odd nickname. No one else was the least bit surprised by Natsu's behavior. But, hey, she had just met the guy.

At this point Natsu sat kneeling on the asphalt, bits of gravel digging into his skin and sticking to his right palm. The laughter died off and the musician was left to wipe a tear from his left eye as he went to raise himself.

"Oh, man. Oh, Luce." He stood tall in front of her now, the smile straining his lips threatened to make itself permanent. "Oh, my God. You're amazing."

With that, he wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. Lucy tried to fight it as her eyes widened, she didn't want to react. She didn't want to wear her obvious inexperience and discomfort for all her friends to see.

 _ **And it wears me out**_

Her wish was granted. The feeling she received from Natsu's body being so close to her's was anything but discomfort.

He was warm, as he had been that night he saved her life, but the pure joy radiating from him touched her with a warmth one doesn't feel with the body's thermoreceptors. She felt it like a seed planted within her heart. For a moment her embarrassment was forgotten. For a moment all the world felt at peace.

Too bad it was over as quickly as it came. "Man, It's like... I don't care about anything that happens for the rest of the day." Natsu admitted, still sporting that face-splitting grin.

"Really, Ash-hole? What if we lose the contest tonight." Gray countered, earning a fist to the face.

"Shuddap, Ice Princess. We ain't gonna lose." Natsu stated with confidence, laughter still finding it's way out of his lungs.

Before her mind could compute and output her behavior, the blonde released a giggle. She reached for her lips and felt a smile. She could feel the way the happiness she felt rose from the seed planted in her chest and stemmed to her lips, blooming in the smile planted on her face. A _real_ smile. And not one born of the adrenaline and pleasure of performing, music, and art, but one born of the company of fellow Homo Sapien Sapiens. _Is that normal?_

 _ **It wears me out**_

"They're probably going to announce the winner soon. We should really get back in there." Levy posed, eyeing her blonde friend's behavior carefully and offering her a smile of her own.

"LET'S GO WIN THIS THING." Natsu stomped off towards the building's entrance, sporting his double fist pumps. "COME ON, HAPPY!"

"Aye, Sir!" The young bluenette rushed after him.

The group found an empty table to sit at inside the main event room. The judges, Kaby Melon and Duke Everlue, had now heard all the performers and were off deciding who their three winners would be this year. It only took a few minutes for the men to return and make their way up to the stage together, Lucy noticed that Virgo walked behind them, carrying a tray. The sight was almost too familiar. Kaby took the mic.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, before we announce the top three, we would like to thank all of you for coming out to this year's First Light Cover Contest. Whether you performed tonight or just came out to enjoy the music, we want to thank you for the support and remind everyone that most of the proceeds of tonight's event benefit the Kemu Zaleon Foundation for Youth Literacy."

 _ **It wears me out**_

The Duke cut in, "Hmm, yes. Now we are going to announce to tonight's winners." Everlue turned to Virgo, extending a hand to the tray she held and took from it an envelope. He opened the paper easily, reading it's contents before speaking again, "In Third Place tonight is Sabertooth's Rogue Cheney and the Frosh with their cover of Radiohead's Fake Plastic Trees."

"Wow, I would have regretted missing a Radiohead cover if it hadn't been Sabertooth." Natsu commented to the Fairy Tail gang as all others in the room broke into applause. Gray elbowed him. "Ow. Wanna go, Icy Breath?" The pinkette whispered in retaliation, earning no reaction.

Kaby Melon reached for the next envelope, tearing it open. "In second place is Lamia Scale's Cold Emperor and Company for their cover of The Killer's White Demon Love Song."

To this, Gray let out an indignant grunt, not bothering to applaud his fellow pupil along with the rest of the room.

"And now, for tonight's first place winner." The Duke started, turning to reach for the last envelope on Virgo's tray.

All breath left Lucy's body and was refused re-entry. Her heart sped up in spite of the lack of oxygen.

Everlue read the envelope with a stricken expression, as if he forgot the winner he agreed to. "First place tonight goes to Fairy Tail's Lucy and the Salamander for their cover of The Smashing Pumpkin's Tonight, Tonight."

 _ **It wears me out**_

Everything was happening around her so fast. Natsu, Happy, Gray, and Levy, shot out of their seats, jumping, hugging, and celebrating. The applause in the room surrounding them were deafening as all eyes came to rest on their table. Still, she sat there silent, unable to believe the words that left the Duke's mouth. Unable to believe she had made it to this moment.

She went out on her own.

Left her father's house, joined a guild.

She had made friends.

She put her skill to the test... and succeeded.

All around her the world was moving but she sat still, processing. It took a minute or two for her to realize Levy and Natsu had been calling her name, wanting to wish her the congratulations they felt she deserved.

"You did it, Lu! You won! Congrats!" Levy pulled the blonde out of her seat, smashing the taller girl against her small body in an excited hug.

 _I won._

"We did it, Luce! I knew we could." Natsu's strong arms pulled her in for an embrace, as well, lifting her into the air for emphasis. That seed was planted again, and another smile grew.

 _"I believe in you, Luce."_

Warm arms were swapped for less enthusiastic cold ones. Gray offered a hug, much more nonchalant and casual than Natsu's bear-attack. As he let her go, Gray swiftly tucked a golden lock behind Lucy's ears, looking down into her eyes for just a second before stating, "Better go get your prize, winner."

 _ **And if I could be who you wanted**_

Before the moment could land, two hands tugged at each of Lucy's arms, pulling her towards the stage.

"C'mon, Luce!" Natsu called as he dragged her left hand.

"Let's go, Luigi." Happy commented from her right.

The runaway heiress just laughed in response, following along happily.

Back at the table, Levy, grabbed at Gray's bare shoulder before he could join them at the stage. "Gray, I said be more casual."

Said man didn't even turn to face her, not wanting to reveal the corners of his lips tugged downward. "Flame Brain hugged her too much."

The three performer's claimed their prize, a nice 200,000 J. They split it three ways, giving Lucy more as it was her first big win, making it 65-65-70.

Now, the event was over, the staff was packing up, but something was tugging at the back of Lucy's mind. As the rest of the gang was making their to the storage room, Lucy once again told them to go ahead of her. She made her way to where Kaby Melon and Duke Everlue stood, giving orders to Virgo and some other staffers. Summoning her inner-business woman, she approached Kaby.

"Mr. Melon, if you don't mind. I would like to speak to you for a moment." Kaby turned to face her with a smile, Everlue walked away, while Virgo lingered, trying to look busy nearby.

"How can I help you, Lucy? I hope you don't mind me calling you that, I just don't know your last name, Miss...?"

 _ **If I could be who you wanted**_

"Lucy is fine, sir. I was just hoping I could make a donation to the Kemu Zaleon Foundation. It's a cause I really believe in, especially since I am a huge fan of your father's works."

The older man raised an eyebrow. "Oh, of course! I would never turn down a donation!"

Lucy removed her checkbook from her purse, leaning down a nearby table to make out the check before tearing the perforation and handing it over.

He studied the piece of paper for a moment before he spoke up, "Lucy, I can't accept this donation from you, it's easily five times more than the prize you just won!" He tried to return the check.

"If you look at the last name on there, I'm sure you will recognize why it's really no trouble." She said quietly.

"Oh." Kaby responded, taking another look. "OH!"

"Please, sir, don't say anything. I really don't want that information getting out."

"Well, Miss Lucy, your secret is safe with me, and your donation is very much appreciated. However, I would like to offer you my condolences over recent family events."

"I appreciate it, Mr. Melon. I just want to make sure the money I inherited is put to good use." Lucy bowed to the older man before turning to walk away.

A hand on her wrist stopped her and she turned to look into bright blue eyes accented by deep fuschia curls. "Excuse me, miss. I believe you dropped this." Virgo's left hand held Lucy's checkbook.

Lucy took the item and smiled at her friend and former maid, depositing it in her purse. "Thank you."

 _ **All the time**_

Lucy found the Fairy Tail gang standing by the entrance. Gray was holding her guitar, handing it off to her when she reached for it.

"Hey, Lu. I was thinking Gaj and I could give you a ride home. Less of a trip for Gray."

Much to the disappointment of two twenty-four year old males, Lucy agreed to this offer. With a wave goodbye to Natsu, Gray, and Happy, the group split in two as half made their way to Gajeel's black suv.

 _Well, Capricorn. You'll know I'm alive now. Corpses can't write checks._

On the ride to her apartment, Lucy rummaged through her purse, looking for a pesky tube of chapstick that was hiding from her. She had emptied the bag on the seat next to her when she noticed a small piece of paper sticking out of her checkbook. _I don't remember putting anything in there._

The blonde flashed back to the moment Virgo handed her the booklet. The blood rushed to her ears, heartbeat quickening as she reached for the small folded sheet. Carefully, red painted fingers straightened the crease, revealing the words to be read by dark-lined, chocolate eyes:

 _You can't run forever, Princess._

 _ **All the time**_

* * *

A/N: I really hope you guys enjoy this chapter. I feel like the writing is meh, but when I read over it I can't think of ways I want to change it. I hope you enjoyed my use of characters from this arch. I wish more of them (namely the brother's Natsu and Happy fight) could have made an appearance, but it just didn't work out that way.

There are a lot of reasons why I don't update regularly, and one of them is definitely my perfectionism. I want to give you guys a quality product here and I hope I have delivered. Please please please please please please please review. I would also love to reach triple digits in followers with this update if possible!

The next chapter is called Runaway and will feature one of Lucy's episodes from her perspective. It's only written in my head so far, so don't pressure me too hard- unless you review, then feel free to pressure me all you want!


	9. The Only Moment We Were Alone

**IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE:** Yay! I hit 50 favorites and over 100 followers! That means it's time to post the next chapter, and man is it a heavy one. I had tried to warn you that this chapter would feature Lucy experiencing another episode, but even I wasn't prepared for everything that entails. This chapter is dark. It talks about various unsavory subjects. It may even evoke triggers for self harm, although I don't think it is too bad.

It may get confusing, and I apologize if it does. There are moments when you have to pay attention to events occurring inside a flashback and on the forefront at the same time. For this reason I have elected to go with instrumental music. I didn't want you to have to keep track of lyrics on top of all of this.

That being said, this chapter follows **two** instrumental tracks by Explosions in the Sky: **First Breath After Coma** followed directly into **The Only Moment We Were Alone**. Both are featured back to back on The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place. The start of the songs are prompted in the story, and you can listen to them through to the end. Take the story at your own pace and try to pay attention to all the crazy shit going down.

Honestly, I am very proud of this chapter. If you have any questions feel free to review, pm, or seek me out on tumblr: **fair-ophelia**.

* * *

 _First Breath After Coma:_

 _The Only Moment We Were Alone_

Natsu and Happy stood slumped against the trunk of the Outback, waiting for Gray to finish his cigarette before beginning the trek back to Magnolia. The younger boy rubbed sleeve-covered fists against his eyes, trying to fight the yawn that split his lips. The pinkette smiled at his friend, right arm uncrossing itself from the left to bury his hand in azure locks.

"It's okay, buddy. We'll be home soon."

Happy huffed as he moved his head out of Natsu's grasp. "I don't know what you mean."

Natsu simply sighed at his "little brother's" response.

"Alright guys, let's pile in." Gray snubbed out his cigarette on the bottom of his shoe before patting himself down. It was a ritual at this point, checking to ensure he still had all of his clothing before leaving any location.

Happy opened the back door, preparing to enter the vehicle, when something snagged his foot and caused him to trip.

"You okay, bud?" Natsu asked, as he waited behind the bluenette so he could get to his seat riding shotgun.

Happy reached down to untangle himself from the ball of fabric that kept him hostage. "Yeah, but... I tripped on a coat?"

"It's not mine!" Gray called from inside the car, turning the key in the ignition.

Happy turned to Natsu with a look of confusion painted on his face, holding the item out to the older man.

Natsu took the bundle of black fabric, holding it out to inspect it before coming to a conclusion. "I think it's Lucy's. She must have dropped it over here."

Happy made his way to his seat successfully. Natsu closed the door, securing the boy inside the car before climbing into his own seat. Immediately, he was hit with a wave of nausea. Gray snagged the article from his frenemy's hand before Natsu had the chance to vomit on it.

"Should we return it?" Happy postulated.

"Maybe," Natsu managed between groans, "It could be her only coat."

"I could swing by her apartment after I drop you two at the guild." Gray suggested, inwardly scheming with this excuse to show up at the blonde's unannounced.

"You might as well drop me at home, then. My house is in between the two." Happy countered, fighting another yawn.

Natsu whined in protest. The idea of being stuck in this death trap any longer than absolutely necessary didn't sit well with him. This conversation alone was taking far too much time.

"It's out of the way for you, Gray." He gagged, "I can drop it at her place after I take Happy home. Now can we please get going?"

"Alright," Gray conceded, expertly fighting any outward signals that could be interpreted as disappointment. _It's just a jacket..._

Meanwhile, Lucy's entire ride to Strawberry Street was spent trying to keep her fellow travelers blinded to her anxieties. She stayed quiet, listening to Levy go on about something or other, bickering with Gajeel periodically. It was a good distraction: seeing the way they interacted. There was something flowing between them. Something that went unaddressed, but was comfortable that way. Lucy hadn't quite known a relationship like theirs before.

It was nearing 11:30 by the time the golden-haired woman closed her apartment door behind her back. Her heart beating quickly, but not like a drum. While the contractions of the muscle were pounding, they lacked rhythm. And that could only mean one thing.

The artist blindly tossed her purse onto the couch as she made her way to the kitchen, rummaging through the fridge for a cold bottle of spring water. She quickly downed as much of the cool liquid as possible.

Her anxiety swam laps through her veins, blood rushing up her neck, to her cheeks and her ears. Sweat condensed on her brow. She tugged at the black skeleton sweater she had chosen for the cold air of October and pulled it over her head.

Lucy took a deep breath, fanning herself with a Fairy Tail-stamped hand. She crossed into her bedroom, trying not to be too hasty. Speed would only quicken the dangerous flames igniting in her. She reached her boombox- same one she had that night in Hargeon- and pressed play.

She needed music. She needed a beat to ground her heart to.

Strings began to sound through the speakers, light notes dancing through the air. _Perfect._ The song is melancholic enough to fit her mood but not too much to pull her under. Everything about it seemed to follow a steady rhythm.

For a moment she stood by the speakers, keeping her body still, her mind focusing on nothing but the music. _Maybe I can make it through the night._ She let herself assess, but even that was too much thinking. Her mind worked on too many tracks, and one of them taunted her with the words Virgo had left her with

 _You can't run forever, Princess._

From there only one small step was needed to fall off the edge and into the abyss of all the darkness the young woman was running from.

 _Hold it together, Lucy._

Tears pricked at her eyes and her pulse skyrocketed as her fear of losing herself only managed to inch her closer to that threat. She walked over to her bedroom window, opening it wide to let in fresh air. She didn't give a shit if she was only wearing her bra and jeans, she needed air.

 _Breathe. Focus on the music._

She spoke to herself, remembering the coping and prevention tactics she had learned in therapy.

 _Distract your mind with something else._

Art. It was the only answer. Writing would be too much for her brain right now, but easy, repetitive strokes of color had a calming appeal.

Lucy stepped over to her desk, reaching behind it for her large pad of sketch paper. She placed it at the floor, almost as if it was the cement she enjoyed working on outside, and asked herself what kind of media she wanted to play with.

 _Fuck that. Look at the pretty, fine edges of that thick, white paper. Wouldn't it feel so satisfying to drag it on your arms until you run red?_

Red clothed knees sank into the cream colored carpet, face falling to meet two open palms as a sob wracked through her body. _No._ She argued back to herself.

But her skin itched for it.

Determined to win, she moved back to her desk, reaching for the acrylic paints. Her body had chosen them for her. Reedus-sensei has taught her what to do when she had the urge to cut: finger painting.

Careful of her red pants, she removed them, figuring it would be better to get paint on her legs than her clothing. Hopefully it would also help her cool down. She put her hair in a messy bun on top of her head, skin itching all the while.

Grabbing a foam brush, Lucy covered the tool in periwinkle paint. The sensation was calming. She closed her eyes as her right hand painted her left, releasing a sigh.

Which only turned into a gasp.

The color periwinkle swirled through her mind, swimming, dancing, somersaulting, until it became something else. A tiny, minute detail of a different time.

 _She heard voices. Arguing. She could tell by the tones, but couldn't make out the subject through the thick wooden doors stationed between herself and the conflict._

 _One of the voices belonged to her mother, and the other was vaguely familiar, but much more difficult for the twelve year-old to place. Curiosity getting the better of her, Lucy slowly inched the door open._

 _"You can't just come barging in demanding more money. We already gave you the agreed upon sum." Lucy's mother spoke with conviction, determined of her just position._

 _"Now Layla, do you really think you are in the position to turn me down?" Recognition and confusion hit the young blonde all at once._ What is Grandpa Acno doing here? _Acnologia was Layla's step-father and Lucy's grandmother's second husband. The man only ever came to Heartfilia Manor to attend family events and holidays._ Why are they fighting about money?

 _"What makes you think you are in the position to demand another one million jewel?"_

Lucy fought with herself to stop the memory from continuing, but this was a battle she had never won. Mindlessly, she continued to slather herself in the pale blue, paint climbing up her forearm to her biceps.

 _"For the same reason I'm free to walk in here today. You go to the police and the media will find out everything. Your whole perfect little life goes up in flames."_

Police?

 _"What are you going to do if we don't give it to you?" The question came across like a challenge, but Lucy could make out a hint of fear in her mother's tone. Lucy had never known her mother to be afraid of anything._

 _"If you don't give me the money, I'll just have to take something even more precious to you." While Grandpa Acno had never been a very warm guy, Lucy had never heard any words spoken colder than these._

The sponge brush dipped into the color once more. Lucy's eyes remained closed as she passed the utensil over her shoulder, along her collarbone, to her neck. The color spread, erasing her flesh and attempting to scrub her out of existence. The plastic edge scraped her throat, leaving the flesh inflamed behind its mask. Lucy didn't even register the stinging that accompanied the action.

 _"I'll never let you have my daughter, you monster."_

 ** _You're unnatural._** Her mind hurled the insult through the flashback. The blonde winced at the thought, her grip tightening on the sponge's handle, scrubbing harder.

 _Upon the mention of herself, Lucy opened the door wide enough peak inside. Her mother stood a foot away from her grandfather, fists clenched tightly. Acnologia stared at the small woman through slitted eyes. Eyes full of hatred._

 _"Get the fuck out of my house. I never want to see you again. I don't give a fuck if it breaks my mother's heart, but I am done treating a creature like you with humanity. Forget the deal. Forget the money. If you ever come back here again, I will fucking kill you, do you hear me?"_

 _"Come now Layla, it's not right to keep a man from his only daughter."_

Blood and paint mixed together on Lucy's thighs as she dug the plastic edge of the brush into the pale flesh. Again, she failed to register either her actions or the sensations. She fought with her mind again, begging her subconscious not to show her any more of the memory. _**You sick fuck, this is your life. This is who you are.**_

The blonde winced again as a slap sounded within her mind, the echo of the action reverberating and bouncing around in her skull. **"No."** She begged aloud, **"I am valid."**

 _Layla pressed her palm to Acno's face with all her might, leaving the flesh to grow red as quickly as the view of the room through the man's eyes. "You twisted bastard! Raping someone's mother doesn't make you her father. Lucy is not your daughter! Now get ou-" **You're incestuous.**_

 _Time moved in slow motion, Acnologia's fingers curling around the heavy, antique clock on the table beside him. His bicep flexing as he raised the object in the air before forcefully sweeping it down into Layla's soft skull._

 **"I am important."**

 _A scream tore from her lips and Lucy leaped towards her mother's staggering body as Layla fell into the pure, white carpet. Blood ran from her head as as her spirit left her. "Lu-cy-" was her last breath._

 **"I am not the circumstances surrounding my birth."**

 _Her mother's maid, Aquarius, was at the scene quickly, ripping Lucy from her dying mother's side. Capricorn and Sagittarius were there a second later to prevent Acnologia from leaving. He would rot in jail for the crimes he committed against this family._

 **"I am not the DNA in my bones."**

 _Lucy stood just a few feet behind Aquarius, watching as the skilled woman attempted to find any way for Layla to hold on. When it was clear things were hopeless, Lucy's tearful eyes fixed on the chair straight ahead. Her pupils traced the periwinkle thread on the throw pillow, spelling out some generic, sentimental phrase._

 **"I am-"**

"Luce?"

The sound of Natsu's voice reached her, a strong arm reaching into her dark canyon, taking her hand, and pulling her out. Slowly, Lucy's eyes began to focus on reality. On the scene Natsu walked into.

"Oh my God. Are you alright, Lucy?" Natsu crawled into the room from the window the blonde had opened earlier in the evening. In his right hand was her trench coat, the one she had left on the ground next to Gray's car while hiding from Sting. He deposited it on her bed before approaching her.

Lucy sat on her floor, kneeling in front of a blank canvas of sketch paper, clad only in her under-things. Her face was stained with salt, black eyeliner running down her cheeks. Her left arm, shoulder, neck, and chest were all painted in that soft blue, raised scratches could be seen, swollen beneath the paint. Both thighs hosted a number of bloody cuts, acrylic polymers contaminating the open wounds.

Pins and needles pricked her from inside along her extremities, begging her to return their circulation, missing the blood that had pooled during her episode.

Lucy craned her neck to look back at Natsu, taking one glance at his concerned expression before the sobbing returned full-force. She took her face in her hands again, forgetting out the drying paint on her left, that now smeared across her face like a war mask.

Natsu cautiously took in her appearance, his mind calculating how to handle the situation. One thing was clear: Lucy was almost completely naked. Natsu grabbed the comforter off her bed, bringing it over to drape it over her marred body. The blonde gripped the edges, pulling the blanket tight around her body before burying her face in the material and allowing herself to come undone even further.

At a loss, Natsu simply rubbed her back soothingly through the comforter. While he had witnessed her last episode, this time he had no idea how the blonde ended up in her current state. Yet, again, she looks like a victim, as if the pain she suffers is not as self-inflicted as it appears.

"I'm sorry." It comes out with a sob, almost unintelligible, but he heard it. "I'm disgusting."

The first thing that hits him is confusion. Why would this beautiful, talented woman apologize for her own suffering?

"Shh, Luce. It's okay. It's okay," He whispered soothingly.

Lucy continued to cry, and Natsu let her. Every few minutes she would apologize and whisper another phrase about how she was worthless, or perverse, or a fuck-up. He just rubbed her back all the while, denying her claims.

"No, Lucy. You are brilliant. You are gifted. You are... Luminous."

"Luminous?" She whispered in return.

"Radiant. When you were up there playing tonight, Lucy, you were... Shining."

"Shining." She tested the word. _**I am shining.**_

"We should get you cleaned up, Luce." He pushed up on his legs to stand, "I don't want your legs to get infected." A leather-clad arm reached out towards her, fingers still stained with the scent of nicotine. She eyed it for a moment, assessing her ability to stand. Her heart still pounded, but at least the blood had begun to flow through her legs again. _Instead of out of them._

She took what was offered.

"If I get you to the shower do you think you can handle it from there?" His question was sincere and calm. It offered help but lacked judgement.

"I think so." Her answer came out hoarse, throat still burning from weeping.

"Good." He led her, still wrapped in blankets, into her bathroom where he turned on the shower, adjusting the handles for warmth before turning to leave the room. She just stood and watched. "I'm going to go get you some water. I'll bring you some clothes too. You can shut the shower curtain, but I wanna leave the door ajar a little, is that okay?"

Lucy just nodded, expressionless as she waited for him to leave the room.

Once he exited, Lucy dropped the blanket, examining the damage she caused herself this time before stepping in the shower to clean off the paint. She closed her eyes as the calefactory rain enveloped her, washing away salt, iron, and ethenyl ethanoate.

"I'm putting the clothes and the water on the sink, okay?"

She hummed an affirmative response as she focused on cleansing her body. She was more scratched up than she had anticipated, causing most of her actions to sting. When she stepped out of the shower she continued to clean the cuts on her legs carefully while trying not to provoke their bleeding. Parched, she took the water she drank in small sips in an effort to rehydrate. Dressed in the mismatched clothes Natsu gave her, an oversized NASA sweatshirt and sleep pants covered in little snowmen, Lucy exited the bathroom, trying not to think about Natsu looking in her underwear drawer.

Natsu sat on her bed, chewing on his thumb. His brow was furrowed, deep in thought. The chances of that thought being worry was high. His mind raced with all the questions he wanted to ask, but kept quiet. _Why did I decide to quit smoking now?_

"Thank you."

He shook his head. "No need." His expression softened as his gaze shifted to fall on her. "Do you have another blanket you can use tonight?"

Lucy simply strolled over to her closet, removing a light pink, star-covered comforter from a shelf. She hugged it to her body, walking over to her bed and sitting next to Natsu. He was about to stand when she stopped him with a light touch to the wrist.

"Why don't you ask questions?"

She was looking at him with brown eyes as clear as melted honey. Melted honey mixed with sadness. Now that she was clean, Natsu could see the scratches on her neck. His eyes flickered briefly to the raised flesh before choosing to settle on her orbs once more.

"Would you give me answers?"

Her gaze downcast. It was enough of a reply.

"You should get some sleep now, Luce." He stood up successfully this time. "I was just returning your jacket. You left it by Gray's car."

"I'll come check on you in the morning." Natsu walked over to her still-open window, motioning to exit before a soft voice stopped him.

"Wait."

He did, pausing by the window and turning to face her. She sat cross-legged on the bed, staring at the ground, her comforter still folded in her arms.

"Can you stay?"

His calloused fingers pulled themselves through his pink locks, anxiously tugging at them as he thought about his options. _What's the harm in staying?_ She was clearly having a rough night _. I am technically her oldest friend in all of Magnolia, after all._ His ran his open palm against the stubble on his cheek.

The silence caused her to finally turn and face him, staring into his onyx eyes with her molten ones. _Fuck. How am I supposed to say no to that?_

"Yeah, alright." He caved, shoulders slumping. "I'll, uh, take the couch I guess. Is there a blanket out there?" He began to remove his jacket and high-tops.

"No." She countered, watching his every movement closely. "I mean, can you stay _here_." She gestured to her bed using her eyes. The pinkette's brows rose in response to her offer.

"I- Um..." He began. She couldn't possibly mean that, but sharing a bed with a friend you met just under a week ago is rather odd.

"I don't want to be alone." She avoided looking at him as the words left her mouth. It felt _almost_ like admitting defeat. Almost like saying she can't survive on her own. Deep down she knew that relationships with other humans don't make a person weak, but it was all too new to her. _A friendship with someone who's not on your payroll._

 _But am I asking too much?_

 _Where is the line?_

Before she could delve too deep, she heard the window close followed by Natsu's calm voice, "I sleep in my boxers. Is that okay?"

The blonde nodded as she spread the comforter to cover her mattress. She gave him some privacy as he readied himself for bed. As far as she could tell, he is doing her a favor. If he was going to take advantage of her, he would have done so when they met, right? She wasn't going to complain, even if circumstances were not preferable.

Natsu turned off the overhead light, prompting Lucy to scoot over to the left side of the mattress. Natsu made his way over, stopping to evaluate the small amount of space. It would be a tight squeeze on her twin-sized mattress. Making a quick decision, Natsu grabbed one of her fluffy pink pillows and placed it beside her, using it as a barrier of sorts, before climbing in.

The two faced opposite walls, minds both reeling. Lucy fought her post-traumatic stress. While it had exhausted her, she still had trouble with the idea of letting go of her thoughts. She battled to keep herself distracted, time slipping by as her thoughts raced. Damp blonde hair tangled as she tossed and turned, whimpering at the pain that took her over and the power of the thoughts that begged her to end her existence.

Beside her, Natsu stared blankly into the darkness, cursing himself for his inability to help those he cares about. He couldn't help Lisanna and now he can't help Lucy. What could he possibly be good for? He still had a chance at rescuing Happy... so maybe it's not all helpless?

 _How long has she been shifting positions now? Half-hour? A whole one?_

His mind wandered back to the day before. Happy, Lucy, and himself had all enjoyed a nice time together. _Why can't it always be like that?_ Simple. Easy. Lucy had fallen asleep on his shoulder without so much as a turn...

 _That's it._

Lucy felt the pillow behind her back move out of place, the contact replaced with the powerful warmth radiating off Natsu's chest. Her whole body tensed when his left arm slid under her, his right one coming over her right to meet it.

She waited for something else to happen. Some move to tell her if she needed to kick him out of the bed. As she waited, she listened. His head had pulled closer to hers, his mouth just two inches from her exposed ear. The longer she waited the more aware she was of the small mewling breaths that left his mouth, causing his chest to contract and expand at her back.

After several minutes her body relaxed, accepting the new position he had put her in, accepting the lullaby of his respiration and the gentle rocking of his body against hers.

It was intimate, yes. Maybe a little too much for how short a time the two had known each other, but that couldn't cause her to deny the fact that it was _working_.

Her eyelids and limbs grew heavy as her breathing synced with his. She understood.

He wasn't taking advantage of her.

 _He was teaching her how to sleep._

* * *

 **Thanks for reading everyone.** Please let me know what you think of this chapter and the trauma Lucy faced as a child. If you head over to my tumblr ( **fair-ophelia** ) you will find the first edition of **Fairy Tail Grunge aesthetic boards** that I am posting to accompany Shine On You Crazy Diamond. I really wanted to give you guys a visual piece of this story. **Again, please leave reviews, PMs, anything!** I will be replying to them soon!


	10. Perfect Blue Buildings

**A/N:** First of all, I want to thank everyone for the wonderful reviews. I am so glad so many of you are enjoying the story, and that I didn't get any hate for the strangeness of Lucy's past. Today we explore the past of another character and I can't wait to hear what you think.

This chapter is dedicated to FFnet user Pingly187 who I would like to thank for the song recommendation: Perfect Blue Buildings by Counting Crows.

* * *

Perfect Blue Buildings

Gray's morning started out like any other. He awoke to the shrill beeping of his alarm in a mangled nest of fabrics: his comforter spilling off the bed and onto the floor and his sheets woven around his limbs, proof of the time he fought to get away from the coverage during the night. Why he still bothered to use blankets was a mystery. After untangling himself from his sheets, his bare legs instinctively found their way to the bathroom to do his business. Stop number two was the kitchen. One pale, callous hand found it's grip on the preset, fresh-made coffee while the other landed on a clean mug drying by the sink. No time was wasted as he filled the ceramic vessel and downed the steaming contents, careful not to spill the dark liquid on his naked chest. Soon, his coffee was paired with a bowl of cereal to form the drummer's breakfast.

Finally caffeinated, Gray returned to his bedroom to don a pair of shorts and sneakers, prepared to head out on a run. He enjoyed this activity daily as a way to reset his mind for things to come. His phone hung heavy in one pocket, keys in another, as his headphones trailed across his chest to his ears. Locking the door behind him, he set his soles to the pavement with abandon.

 _Just down the street from your hotel, baby,_

 _I stay at home with my disease._

Today, this rejuvenation was especially needed. Sure, last night Gray had a nice time. He went out with his friends and won a contest. He enjoyed the ability to let go and focus on carrying a beat. Yet, in his chest grew blooming interest for a certain blonde- well, interest and confusion. She was intriguing, and mysterious. She wasn't like others who shared themselves freely, wearing their emotions and experiences like an open book. She kept to herself, but inside of her passion rage and fought to burst forth. He was able to witness a fraction of that passion last night and couldn't deny, she reminded him of himself.

 _And ain't this position familiar, darling?_

 _Well, all monkeys do what they see._

 _Help me stay awake, I'm falling..._

However, that wasn't the only thing on his mind this morning.

 _Down on Virginia and La Loma,_

 _Where I got friends who'll care for me..._

In just two short hours, Gray had a very important meeting. A meeting with Koriho Tsukamaki, an executive at one of the most well known publishing companies in Fiore. For years now he had been working on telling his own story, using manga as a vehicle to deliver just that. There are many out there who need to know life can get better. He would give them such a story. A story of determination, of a young boy thrown into the world after the death of his guardian and teacher. Of those he met along the way, and his path to Fairy Tail.

Ice Trail would tell that story- with a magical twist.

 _You got an attitude of everything I ever wanted,_

 _I got an attitude of need._

As Gray turned down another street he begged his mind not to play through the memories. Funny how our bodies only listen to us when they want to.

 _Help me stay awake, I'm falling..._

Ur Milkovich was his aunt, his mother's sister and his only living relative after his parents, Mika and Silver, succumbed to the fatal Deliora disease. Gray had only been six years old when he was forced to move up north to stay with Ur, her daughter Ultear, and her foster son Lyon. Although he had been unhappy with these circumstances at first, Gray's feelings changed the longer he spent time with his aunt. Children were her passion. After almost losing her daughter in infancy, Ur decided she wanted to help other children in need. She began volunteering in her community and a few years later she came across Lyon, a poor young boy in need of a home. Her home and her heart were filled when Gray stepped in.

 _Asleep in perfect blue buildings,_

 _Beside the green apple sea._

 _Gonna get me a little oblivion, baby._

 _Try to keep myself away from me._

Ur's other passion had been music. In her youth she had played the drums, joining with friends and rocking in girlbands. To Ur, drumming represented freedom. The freedom of movement and sound, the creation of rhythm and the beat of life. This was a gift she shared with her boys, filling the house with discordant sound and driving Ultear mad. To Gray and Lyon, she taught all she knew.

 _Gonna get me a little oblivion, baby._

 _Try to keep myself away from me._

It was Ur who first encouraged Gray's talent for drawing. They started as childish doodles on construction paper with crayon, but Ur was always ready with a smile and a complement each day he returned after school with a new picture. Soon enough, his pictures found their way on every page he could find, filling the cracks of his homework assignments and distracting his mind from his surroundings. As the months went on, the children in his class turned on the kid who was always scribbling away. They made fun of his drawings, of his lack of parents, and of the strange stipping habit he seemed to pick up as a result of his drumming. He began to get in fights, and Lyon was no help. He had no pity for his unwanted, makeshift-brother.

 _It's 4:30 A.M. on a Tuesday._

 _It doesn't get much worse than this._

It was then that Gray's drawings took on a dark side, turning violent and full of pain. He seemed obsessed with depicting the death of his parents. Their disease transformed with art into a monster, a demon too powerful to defeat. This event represented the source of all his unhappiness. If they had not died, he would still be smiling and living with them, right? He wouldn't have school bullies, he wouldn't have a brother who hates him, and he wouldn't randomly throw his clothes around.

 _In beds in little rooms in buildings in the middle of_

 _these lives which are completely meaningless._

Ur's smile twisted when a bloody-nosed Gray returned from school one day and handed her the image of himself standing victoriously over the frozen bodies of his schoolyard tormentors. Instead of getting angry, the kind woman knelt down to her nephew and prodded him gently, "Gray, you're so talented. Why do you draw such dark things? I know you've had a rough life, and those bullies of yours aren't helping, but you shouldn't let the darkness gain control of you." Her worried expression transformed into a soft smile, resting a hand on his shoulder, "I know you're angry, but your art could be so beautiful if you just focused on the light."

 _Help me stay awake, I'm falling..._

She was right, but he didn't have the sense to listen to her then. Another year went by, and school hours were still consumed by comments torturing the weirdo orphan who spent more time drawing than paying attention to his teacher. Recess only meant one thing: another fight. Of course, another fight meant another afternoon stuck in the principal's office, a stuck up man who refused to believe the angry child was being victimized. It was times such as those that the boy wished he could join his parents as a resident of the afterlife.

 _Asleep in perfect blue buildings,_

 _Beside the green apple sea._

 _Gonna get me a little oblivion, baby._

He gave up on his anger, he gave up on fighting back. His injuries got worse as the bullies used his apparent cowardice against him. They called him a chicken for not fighting back, but it didn't stop them. Gray couldn't find it in him to care. He gave up on drawing. It didn't bring him joy or relief any longer. Ten years-old and he walked through each day as ghost, barely feeling. He simply laid down and took his beatings like a dog, with each one wishing they would just kill him instead.

 _Try to keep myself away from myself and me._

All of that changed one day when he, Lyon, and Ultear were helping Ur clear out the attic. He was pulling bric-a-brac out of a dusty corner when he found it, an old hand gun. Young, midnight-blue eyes widened as they traced the object in his hand. His mouth opened for a moment, about to announce his discovery when he suddenly realized this gun could solve all his problems. He simply hid it until he could discreetly stash the firearm under his bed.

 _I got bones beneath my skin, and mister..._

 _There's a skeleton in every man's house._

The antique sat there for a month or so as he entertained his options of how to use it. He would turn it on himself and end all his suffering. No more bullies, no more stupid Lyon. He would be with his parents again. He just had to work up the nerve.

 _Beneath the dust and love and sweat that hangs on everybody,_

 _There's a dead man trying to get out._

However, it was on a Friday, during one particularly brutal beating that his thoughts began to change. Almost like a reflex, as if that gun had given him power again, he sent a right hook smack into the face of the ginger-haired boy who had been hitting him like rapid fire. With his muscles flexed and a smirk on his face Gray came to realize that he was not the problem. It was these other kids, these bullies, who deserved to die. If they were gone, Gray could find happiness again, he could go back to drawing and make Ur smile.

 _Please help me stay awake, I'm falling..._

His plan was hatched. After school he returned to the attic and tracked down some old bullets. He took them along with the gun far into the woods behind the house where he set up a few cans to practice his shot. Satisfied with himself after one day of practice, Gray stashed the weapon in his backpack.

 _Asleep in perfect blue buildings,_

 _Beside the green apple sea._

The following Monday Gray overslept, leaving Ur to bring him into school an hour or so late. He sat in the passenger seat of her minivan in front of the school as she wrote up his tardy note. Ur instructed him him to put the note in his backpack so he would not lose it on his way into the school. He unzipped the large pouch and dropped the paper in as he swung his door open and made his way out.

 _Gonna get me a little oblivion, baby._

He didn't notice the large rock his foot slipped on as he made to exit the vehicle, causing the contents of his backpack to spill out all over the front seat. Time moved in slow motion as he panicked, reaching to hide the gun back in the sack just as Ur laid her eyes on it. Two sets of hands landed on the firearm, Gray's on the handle and Ur's on the barrel.

 _Try to keep myself away from me._

It wasn't meant to happen.

The gun was old and the safety was faulty.

Blood was pouring from her chest before the two could process what had occurred.

When the ambulance arrived Ur told them the gun had fallen from the glovebox when Gray tripped getting out of the car. That the gun was old, but it was all she had as a single mother to protect the ones she loved. Gray was too shocked for words and didn't argue. It was in that ambulance that Ur shared her final words with him.

 _Perfect blue buildings..._

"I just want all my children to be happy, to see the world and all it has to offer. I only regret that I couldn't seal away your darkness. If you just focus on the light, Gray, I know you will shine."

Gray would never forget the light touch of her cold hand as she spoke, or the way the pressure fell away with her last breath.

 _Beside the green apple sea._

That was when child services came. Ultear had been 18, legally an adult and able to take care of herself. Yet, for whatever reason, Lyon and Gray were separated. This suited young Fullbuster just fine. Lyon had never liked him, and even lashed out at Gray for causing Ur's death. After all, if he hadn't been late to school, the event never would have taken place. Gray cursed Lyon for not knowing just how right he was. The other boy would simply serve as a reminder of his sin. It's better to be apart.

 _I wanna get me a little oblivion, baby._

So, Gray was sent to an orphanage in Mone run by Fiore State Council member Torch Endeavor. Most of the children there were kind, but their circumstances were not. Each friend he made soon left him. The was Nano, a kind girl a year or so younger than he was. She took to him right away, but not much time passed before she was adopted by a loving couple. Then, there was Mary and Amelie sisters rescued out of human trafficking who stayed at the orphanage briefly while their living relatives were tracked down. Each friend Gray made soon left, moved on to a new family, leaving Gray behind to be tormented by Unicol and that idiot Milk Boy.

 _Try to get myself away from myself and me._

When Gray entered middle school he was excited to learn that the school band offered drums. Finally, the universe had restored some solace to the boy, providing him with a distraction from his sorry lot. He stayed after school in the band room everyday and practiced. This, he would never regret.

At the end of the year, Mone Junior High hosted a benefit concert. The junior high's band would be opening for one of the most popular musicians in all of Fiore: Guildarts Clive. Knowing this was his last chance to sit being the drums before summer came, Gray had played his heart out that night He fought his guilt to remember the words Ur had told him. Drumming represented freedom, so for that evening he let himself be free.

 _Oh, little perfect blue buildings._

When it was all over Gray sat outside the school, staring out across the river as he waited for Torch-sama to pick him up. It was then that he was unexpectedly approached by Gildarts himself. The older man lowered himself down on the curb beside the boy, lighting a cigarette as he did. Gray started in shock at the closeness of the famous musician, who simply kept his eyes on moonlight reflecting off the water. The boy was taken aback further when the man spoke.

"That was some drumming you did back there, kid." Guildarts sent Gray a sideways glance, only to laugh when the kid continued to stare. Placing the cigarette in the crook of his lips, Guildarts offered his hand. "Name's Guildarts. Nice to meet ya."

 _Well I can't keep myself away from me._

Gray simply stared at the rough grip thrust toward him. "You got a name, kid?"

"Gray." The boy blurted.

Guildarts broke out in a large smile as he returned his hand to his cigarette. Blowing out a puff of smoke he asked, "Where'd you learn to drum like that, Gray? Surely they didn't teach that in this dump." He took another drag before looking back to inspect the school building.

Gray looked down at the worn sticks clutched in his hands before answering quietly, "My Aunt Ur taught me."

"Ur?" Guildarts ran the syllable through his memory, coming across the image of the female drummer flanking another female guitarist and bassist in a club back in his twenties. "Ur Milkovich? You gotta be kidding me!"

The young drummer had thought he couldn't be any more shocked, but he was wrong.

"Man, I begged her to be my drummer back in the day! What's good ol' Ur up to these days?" Guildarts' grin reached his eyes as he expectantly waited for Ur's pupil to answer.

Gray's body shook at the question, his grip on the sticks tightened as a few tears flooded the night that lived in his eyes. "She... Uh..." But the words wouldn't escape.

 _Oh, little perfect blue building._

Guildarts sobered at the boy's response, stamping out his cigarette on the concrete before offering his condolences. "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that, kid." A large, warm hand laid itself on the boy's back, offering comfort. Guildarts thought back to Ur's response the night he had asked her to join him on tour.

" _I appreciate your interest in my talent, but tonight was my last show." Ur instinctively held her stomach, a smile capturing her lips as her eyes fell to meet her hand, "It's time for me to focus on raising the next generation."_

Here he was, a piece of Ur's next generation, and at such a young age he played with a passion that rivaled her own.

"You had a marvelous teacher, kid. I think she would be proud of you."

Gray looked up, catching the soft yet serious expression displayed on the older man's face. It only lasted a moment before Guildarts was pushing himself off the pavement and onto his feet. He stood there for a moment, eyes fixed on the horizon across the river.

"Anyway, I came over here to tell you something. I think you got talent, kid. From what I can tell you got it pretty rough here, but across that river in the west, there's a town called Magnolia. If you go there, you'll find a place for people like us. It's a guild called Fairy Tail."

 _How am I gonna keep myself away?_

Gray fixed his eyes into the darkness across that river, as if he would be able to see the town if he stared hard enough. _A place for people like us._ He turned to ask Guildarts what he meant, but the older man was gone. Torch-sama's beat-up car was coming around the bend.

It only took Gray a few months to save up enough money for a boat and train ticket. He was sick of Unicol and Milk Boy. He was sick of Black Vox Orphanage. He was sick of Mone. Most of all, he was sick of staring out across the river. With a note left behind for Torch-sama, Gray took all he had and left. Only one thought stood fixed in his mind: _Fairy Tail_.

It didn't take long for the art to return to him, for his drawing to return and set his mind free of the burden he carried. He would never forgive himself for the incident that took Ur away, but he vowed never to let the darkness take him again.

 _How am I gonna keep myself_

 _Away from me?_

This was the story who made Gray Fullbuster who he is. This was how he found Fairy Tail. The place that filled his life with friends who last for a lifetime. The place that housed his true family. A place to call home. Fairy Tail was his light. With his focus on it, he would tell his story.

Gray returned to the front door of his apartment, panting. With any luck, Koriho Tsukamaki would see the passion in Gray's drawings. The passion he held for the young ice-make mage who set out to train after the death of his master, only to find his way to his true home: the wizard guild Fairy Tail.

It wasn't long before his meeting now. Gray opened his door, removing his headphones and removing his phone from his pocket. He prodded over to the fridge, reaching for a bottle of water as he checked the time. He still had an hour and a half. As he made his way to the bathroom for a shower.

 _Keep myself away,_

 _How am I gonna keep myself away from me?_

After rinsing himself of his stressful run, Gray emerged anew. He would sell his story to Tsuamaki. He had to. He dried his hair, dressing in a button down and slacks before heading out the door. In the front seat of his Outback he checked his device one last time, opening his messages to find one unread.

Conversation: Erza, Flame Brain

Erza: Greetings, boys. After ending my tour I ran into an old friend who is getting married this weekend on Halloween. He expressed to me that he was having trouble finding a replacement band for the reception, as his previously booked band had an emergency arise. While I think it is simply inexcusable for anyone for break a commitment like that, I kindly offered our services. I figured this was a good time for the three of us to play just like we did in the old days. I will contact you later with further instructions.

 _Keep myself away,_

 _How am I gonna keep myself_

 _Away from me?_

* * *

 **A/N:** I know you were probably hoping to find out what happened when Natsu and Lucy woke up together and get some Nalu Fluff, but I kinda gave you the opposite of that. I really like Gray's character and felt he deserved his own chapter.

If any of you are wondering where I pulled out names like Mone (pronounced mo-nay), Nano, Torch Endeavor, Black Vox, Milk Boy, ect. you should read the real Ice Trail by Yuusuke Shirato. It's a Fairy Tail spin-off manga. The manga Gray is writing is supposed to be based on that.

I plan to develop more side characters as I did with Gray. There will probably one or two chapters devoted to each along with some gradual development through the story. Lucy and Natsu aren't the only crazy diamonds in this story who need to shine.

It looks like we're moving on to the Lullaby Arc! Time to meet Erza! I wonder what kind of musician she will be?


	11. Lazy Eye

**A/N:** I'm baackkk~~ After three months, hundreds of hours of writing, and needlessly obsessing about so many unnecessary details, I can finally bring you the next installment of Shine On You Crazy Diamond. I hope I don't disappoint. I believe this chapter is the longest yet with 8,627 words. Don't forget to review and tell me what you think!

* * *

 **Lazy Eye**

Natsu Dragneel sat across from his young friend Happy, each boy munching away on the large late morning breakfast of eggs, bacon, and pancakes that Mira had just placed in front of them. Usually, nothing could interrupt Natsu's thoughts during a meal, but that wasn't the case today. Natsu watched the younger boy carefully, trying to pick apart his emotions. All he wanted was for the kid he cared about more than any other to be happy. In small moments, when Natsu's guilt sank into him like a pick-axe, he would try to assess how well he treats the blue-haired boy in front of him.

Happy never knew his parents. He was raised in an orphanage until he was old enough to attend school. That was when his current foster family took him in, but it was hard to say they provided much love or attention. Sure, they made sure he was fed, they clothed him, and got him to school, but they cared so little for the emotional welfare of the boy. Natsu knew that Happy deserved so much better than what the wretched foster system could provide, and he wanted to give it to him.

Still, it was scary to consider actually being the father of a ten-year-old kid at such a young age. Was he ready for the responsibility? He would try to be. It was hard to drop Happy off back at that house each night, knowing those inside didn't give a rat's ass about the boy. They had lived with him for five years, how could they still not care?

Pushing away the thought, calloused fingers clenched into a night grip on the wooden guild table. It didn't matter what those people thought. Natsu cared. Natsu would do anything in his power to give Happy a good life- and that is the reason Natsu Dragneel feels so guilty on this final October morning.

Watching Happy finish every bite on his plate with a satisfied burp, Natsu decided to voice his concern. "I'm sorry I can't go trick-or-treating with you tonight, buddy."

The young boy finished off his glass of chocolate milk before smiling up at the pinkette. "That's okay, Natsu! You have an important job to do, and this way I get to go with Carla." Happy turned to stare dreamily at a table on the other side of the guild where a young white-haired girl sat beside a taller dark-bluenette.

October 31st was always a busy day here at Fairy Tail. Musicians belonging to the guild are typically requested to perform at parties and events, while the artists are commissioned to help create spooky scenery and costume design. Things only got busier with the added fact that Halloween happened to fall on a Saturday this year. All morning, members of the guild have been in and out, rummaging through the costume closet for something to wear and finalizing details before heading off to their jobs. Of course, this left many of the children of the guild without their parents or guardians, so the small group would all trick-or-treat together with a few pre-selected chaperones.

The bluenette sitting at Carla's table would be one of those chaperones.

Natsu whistled for Happy to follow him before getting up and making his way over to said table.

"Hey Wendy!" Natsu greeted the girl with a large grin before noticing the pinkette who sat across from her. "Oh, hey Chelia." The girls both waved in response.

"Hello, Carla," The words drifted sweetly out of Happy's mouth. The young girl whose white bangs were clipped up to her head with a small cat barrette simply crossed her arms over her chest and replied with a "Hmmp!"

The two other girls at the table snickered at the younger female's behavior before Wendy spoke up, "Hey Natsu, Happy. Don't mind her."

Wendy Marvell, age nineteen, was a talented singer and keyboardist who joined Fairy Tail just a few years ago, bringing along her younger sister Carla, age ten. Since graduating high school, Wendy has joined Erza on tour to form an act called Titania in the Sky. The two work together perfect, with Wendy's shy nature allowing Erza to absorb the majority of the spotlight. After finding out Wendy and Carla share a similar childhood to the one Natsu lives to forget, Natsu and Wendy bonded and have come to view one another as siblings.

The pinkette sitting across from her, however, was Chelia Blendy, Wendy's girlfriend and member of rival guild Lamia Scale. "Hey Natsu," The fellow pinkette grinned. Happy wasted no time in taking the seat to Chelia's right, striking up a school-related conversation with the youngest girl.

"I just wanted to thank you guys for taking the kids trick-or-treating tonight. I feel bad that I can't take the little guy myself." Natsu rubbed the back of his neck, sheepishly looking around the guild to play off his embarrassment at behaving fatherly. His eyes flicker to the blonde head that enters the doors just in that moment. The man's heart rate spikes. Onyx eyes fall directly on tired brown orbs for just a moment before the girl averts her gaze, trying to hide her face behind her hair as she makes a beeline for the bar.

"It's no problem, Natsu," the sweet bluenette replies. Natsu turns his attention away from the blonde to focus on Wendy. "I wanted to take Carla, myself. Honestly, it's gonna be nice to take a night away from Erza." The keyboardist's eyes fell to the table as she spoke, her cheeks turning a not-so-shocking shade of red. Wendy was always blushing.

"So who is the girl, Natsu?" While Wendy was shy and sweet, Chelia was blunt and playful. They made quite the pair. Natsu looked at the outsider in confusion. "Oh, don't give me that look, Dragneel. When she walked in your face went as red as Wendy's."

"Chelia!" Wendy protested with wide eyes.

"What? At least it looks cute on you." The female pinkette poked her girlfriend's cheeks, causing the latter to blush even deeper.

Natsu took advantage of their distraction to peer over at Lucy once again. She was sitting at the bar talking to Mirajane and sipping on some kind of smoothie or something. The girl had been avoiding him ever since he stayed the night with her. He had only seen her a few times over the past week when the two of them met with Gray to go over the setlist Erza wanted to play at the wedding reception tonight.

Reluctant to admit this even to himself, Natsu would be lying if he said waking up next to her that next morning felt anything but comfortable. His eyes had fluttered open to witness the beautiful woman asleep like an angel, her head resting against his heart. Her small frame looked so peaceful, a vast change from the night before. Small bits of mascara still rested around her eyes and down her cheeks, inflamed flesh and deep scratches littering the canvas of her pale skin, a testament to her struggles.

Natsu climbed out the bed carefully, not wanting to wake her. He remained at the apartment on Strawberry Street for a few more hours after failing to find the resolve to leave her. The pinkette sat on the couch, charging his phone and watching the rest of the Star Wars trilogy until Lucy finally awoke on her own. By that point it was late afternoon and instead of pushing the issue he offered to walk with her to the guild for lunch. Very little conversing occurred on the way, save for bringing up Erza and the wedding gig. Once at the guild, other members rushed them with questions about the cover contest, congratulating them on the win.

It wasn't until he dropped her back at home that Lucy thanked him for all his help in the last twenty-four hours. Natsu brushed it off. While he had wanted to believe he made a difference, the track record of his past prevented him from claiming victory.

"Look at him! Just staring at her with no shame!" Chelia and Wendy laughed as they watched him, "Who is she, Natsu?"

"Oh!" Wendy shouted as if she just remembered something. "Is she your new partner?" Turning to Chelia, the bluenette explained, "Erza said that when she mentioned the wedding gig to Natsu and Gray, Natsu replied saying he would do it as long as he could bring his new partner. So is that her, Natsu?"

Salamander broke out of his trance, donning his usual smirk before answering excitedly. "Yup! Her name is Lucy! She just joined two weeks ago, while you were on tour, Wens. You should hear her sing. Man, is she talented. She can dance, draw, write, play guitar. She can even play violin-"

"Is it just me, or is he crazy about this chick?" Chelia jutted her left thumb at Natsu as she posed the question at her girlfriend. Wendy snickered.

"Hey! It's not like that. She's just a talented musician and artist, therefore a perfect fit for the wonderful guild that is Fairy Tail. And since I brought her here, I joined a team with her to show her the ropes. Goodness, Chelia, shouldn't you be harassing people in your own guild hall?"

Chelia shrugged, "Messing with you fairies is just more fun! And besides, who else is gonna take your kid trick-or-treating?" She punctuated her statement with a quick jab to Natsu's stomach.

Natsu clutched the patch of skin that had met with her fist despite the lack of pain, muttering under his breath, "Stupid snakes." Onyx orbs searched for a certain blonde again, finding she was now no longer sitting on her barstool. Scanning the room, Natsu found her being dragged by a white-haired she-devil to the costume closet. _Oh, man, I can't miss this._

"Excuse me ladies, but I must attend to my partner." Natsu took his leave, making his way to the room Lucy and Mira disappeared into.

"Oh! Let's try this one!" Mirajane removed one of the many costumes hanging in the room and whirled it around to show the newest guild member. "Neko-Chan! You would look so cute in this!"

Natsu peered in from the doorway to see Mira trying to force Lucy into a black unitard with matching cat ears and kitten paw gloves. Bile rose into his throat when he noticed the sheer midsection of the outfit and the low neckline that would leave nothing to the imagination. _What is Mira trying to do to the poor girl?_

"I-I'll try it." Lucy replied warily, taking the costume from the barmaid's hands and disappearing behind a curtain set-up for changing.

Natsu remained in the hall, unsure if he should make himself known just yet. The idea of watching the She-Devil torment his partner with silly costumes was far too tempting. While playing his little game of "stalker," Fairy Tail's resident ladies' man approached the scene.

"Yo, Natsu." Loke called as he made his way towards the room. "Halloween again, ready to see some hot babes in slutty outfits?"

Ink-colored eyes found themselves rolling in their sockets. "I think you're the only one who looks forward to that, man." _C'mon Natsu, like you're not dying to see Lucy dressed as a sexy cat._ "Do you even have a job tonight?" _Shut the fuck up._

"I was actually invited to a small get together this evening at the penthouse suite of one Jura Neekis," the ginger-haired man bragged. "I just popped by to see if the guild had any suits my size. I wanna look dapper for the ladies."

Natsu deadpanned, unsure of how to respond to someone so single-minded. "Yeah... Good luck, dude."

The playboy wandered into the room, greeting the single visible occupant, "Ah, Mirajane, my beautiful white dove. Might you know the whereabouts of any tuxedos?" Loke scooped up the woman's hand, planting a soft kiss above the knuckles.

Mira simply chuckled, "Let me take a look."

"I'm not really sure this is my kind of thing." Lucy finally spoke, coming out from behind the curtain, still inspecting the outfit, "I mean I like cats and all, but this costume is a little too revealing." She looked up only to be greeted with the golden, lense-covered eyes of a certain guitarist. Her cheeks began to burn as she wrapped her arms around her chest.

Loke's face fell, his legs immediately beginning their backward retreat out of the room. "O-on second thought, I think I'd better rent one just to be safe."

Mira frowned, "But I think I found one right here."

"You keep it!" Loke yelled from the hall.

"That guy sure is a weirdo," Natsu commented, finally making his way in from the hall. He forced his eyes to look anywhere but the blonde's body. "Tryin' to help Luce find a costume?"

"Yup." Mira's cheer returned full force. "No luck so far."

"Honestly, I would prefer something that doesn't draw a lot of attention." Lucy voiced quietly, making her way to search through the racks again.

Natsu's indirect gaze followed the woman as she timidly rummaged through the clothing, so self conscious and unsure. What could have happened to someone so seemingly perfect that would cause her to cower at every small decision? He had no doubt it was the same trauma that caused the self-abuse he had now witnessed twice.

Thinking back about when he first met her, she denied that the stunt on the bridge was an actual attempt on her life, and why would it be? She's beautiful and her talent stretches over a variety of disciplines.

A vision of white and bright blue flashed through his mind and onyx eyes sealed themselves behind their lids in an act of restraint. True, not all wounds are easily to visible to even the closest of relationships.

"How about this!" Mira's voice, though directed to another, brought Natsu back to reality. In the pale-haired woman's hands lay a red minidress with matching rabbit ears and fishnet tights. The boy gulped. _Is she crazy?_

"That's not exactly what I meant, Mira." Lucy sweatdropped.

"Oh, just try it on!" The she-devil launched at the blonde, fitting the rabbit ears to her blonde head. A waning whistle was heard from the doorway, and the two women turned to fix their eyes on a form behind Natsu. The pinkette craned his neck to find the hulking form of Gajeel Redfox.

"That really suits you, new girl." He stated.

"Excuse me?" The blonde questioned.

"That outfit suits you. I knew I was right to peg you for a bunny girl."

Suddenly the meaning behind Gajeel's odd nickname for Lucy sank in. The three other guild members exchanged glances, each looking to the others to try and convince themselves that Gajeel isn't saying what they are thinking. Unable to give the bone-headed musician the benefit of the doubt, Natsu decided to gift his friend with a nice punch to the gut.

"Hey! This is not the time to start a brawl, Natsu!" Levy trotted up the small hallway to the aid of her not-boyfriend.

"He was being a pervert." Natsu defended.

"Yeah, right," the bluenette doubted.

"Tell her what you said, Lug Nuts."

The four stared at Gajeel, most wondering if he would freely admit to his precious "shrimp" the words that had just left his mouth.

"I was just telling Bunny Girl over there that those rabbit ears really suit her." Red eyes refused to meet another pair.

Levy stared at the shaggy-haired male for a full minute before giving him a nice suckerpunch and storming off into the main hall. Gajeel recovered swiftly and followed after her.

"Wow, Lucy, you even managed to tug on the pervert hidden within Gajeel." Mirajane gave the girl a once over before snatching the rabbit ears off her head, "You're right, maybe something inconspicuous would serve you best. Wouldn't want you to take attention away from the bride, after all."

The music duo both sighed in relief.

"What are you wearing tonight, Natsu?" Mira asked. Natsu tried not to notice the way Lucy avoided his gaze, carrying on about her search with disinterest in the topic.

"Do you really have to ask, Mira?"

Mira simply smiled before turning to Lucy and explaining, "Every year Natsu insists on being a dragon wizard for halloween. He paints his face with red scales and even wears a large pair of wings. It can be quite bothersome to move around in, but I think it's cute that he keeps it up." She giggles.

Lucy focuses on the floor, trying not to look at Natsu for too long. Truth be told, the blonde is gravely embarrassed by the events of last Saturday night. "I'm going to go change into something else."

"Here," Wanting to end Mira's little game for the sake of his own restraint, Natsu grabs a garment from the rack closest to him and holds it out towards his partner, "Wendy wore this last year, so I can promise it's modest."

The costume was made up of a mid-thigh-length fuchsia dress with a deep purple bodice and translucent pink sleeves hanging from below the shoulder. On the back, flanking either side of corset-style lacing, were two medium sized white fairy wings.

"Excellent idea, Natsu. It will go perfectly with her guildmark!" Mira chimed.

"I'll try it on, thanks." Lucy timidly answered, taking the outfit from Natsu and heading back towards the makeshift changing station.

Natsu's eyes trailed her form as she receded behind the curtain, thoughts calculating a way to end her off behavior, when a new voice takes his attention.

"You might wanna go change, Ash Breath." Gray stood at the doorway, sleeved arms folded over his bare chest. He wore a white jacket with a deep navy trim, sleeves folded at the elbows. Tied around his head was a navy bandanna with a matching sash wrapped around his hips. On his feet was heavy pair of black boots.

"And what exactly are you supposed to be, Icicle Dick?"

"I'm a pirate, Flame Brain, what else?"

"I don't know, maybe the world's worst-dressed 80's rocker?"

"What the f- Ugh." Gray pinched just above the bridge of his nose, "This is not why I came in here. I was saying you might want to go change because Erza is here."

"Erza is here?" Sweat immediately formed on pink brow.

"Yeah, so while she's distracted by chastising everyone else, you might wanna go change before she sees you're not ready."

The fearsome woman's voice now trailed down the hall and into the room, "I swear, sometimes I do not know what to do with you. And don't even get me started with you, Macao."

"Oh dear." Mira muttered, making her way out the door with concern painted across her face.

"I need a cigarette," Gray mumbled, following the pale-haired woman.

"Shit." The pinkette threw off his jacket and shirt, removing a black vest from a hanger nearby before tossing his arms through the sleeves. With haste, he pulled at each black converse, removing the shoes and socks quickly. Grabbing at a pair of white pants, Natsu ducked behind a rack of clothes to conceal himself as he removed his own jeans and replaced them with the costume. For the finishing touches he slides on his wooden sandals before pulling on his dragon wings.

"Natsu?" Lucy's voice calls from behind the curtain. "I think this costume will work."

The pinkette smiles, glad to help, "Well come on out then, Luce."

Lucy tiptoed out from behind the curtain looking like a renaissance fair's dream. The shirt fell just below her thighs, accentuating the shapeliness of her legs. The bodice did well to encase the generosity of her chest with minimal cleavage. The trusses of her blonde hair fell to her shoulder's in wild tangles, giving her a sense of spring and life. _Ba-dump._

"Luce..."

"Could you make sure the bodice is laced properly?" Lucy turned around, gathering her hair to one side and exposing the asterisms dotting her back. She held her breath when she felt the older male behind her, fiddling with the laces. Her nerves worked frantically inside her, asking question after question she didn't know the answer to. The number one seemed to remain: _Why the hell does he make me so nervous?_

Natsu released a held breath, affected easily by the closeness of her exposed skin. He was lost between the sweetness of her beauty and the bitterness of the mutilation that skin had been subjected to. _Stop thinking about her like that!_ "Lucy," He tried to choose a side, "I hope I didn't do anything to upset you the other night."

The woman closed her eyes tight, swallowing the knot in her throat. She knew this conversation was coming, yet still wasn't ready for it just yet. _Should I tell him?_

"Natsu, I trust you are helping that woman to get dressed, not the other way around."

An angel arrived on the wing of a prayer.

Lucy and Natsu both jolted in the wake of the brusque interruption.

"Yup!" The pinkette, taking a step back, turned to the red-headed intruder with a brilliant smile. "I was just helpin' Luce with her costume. Erza, allow me to formally introduce my new musical partner, Lucy Ashley."

Taking another deep breath and summoning energy from some unknown second origin, Lucy turned around to greet the angel, one of the most famous artists in all of Fairy Tail.

"Erza Scarlet," A gauntlet-clad arm thrust out towards the blonde, "Nice to finally meet you." The older woman stood wearing a black dress with an armored breastplate sewn into the fabric and triangular metal tassets falling over the skirt in regular intervals. Vibrant red hair cascaded down to the female's mid-back. Overall, the costume was beautiful, but quite intimidating.

"Likewise."

The veteran guild member remained still for a moment, finger resting on chin as she fully examined the newbie.

"Your costume choice suits you, but you should let me do your make up. Come, sit." Erza, as always, got straight down to business. Pulling a folding chair from the wall, Erza set the bag she was carrying on the floor and began rummaging through it, removing a number of products and mumbling to herself about what would work with the blonde's outfit.

Lucy stood shocked by the older woman's behavior for a moment. She had done simple make up this morning before going to the guild, figuring it would work for whatever costume she chose. Unable to speak against her senior guildmate, she instinctively turned to Natsu for some form of input. The pinkette merely nodded, prompting the blonde to take a seat.

Erza made her selection, taking the blonde's face in her left hand as her right began applying something to Lucy's eyelids. "So Lucy, how are you enjoying Fairy Tail so far?"

The grip clenched on either side of the blonde's mouth prevented her from replying, allowing her captor to continue on. "No doubt everyone is treating you kindly. Mira has told me a little about you. It seems you have made a name for yourself as a street artist. We are lucky Natsu was able to scout you out before you joined another guild."

Lucy sat perfectly still, fighting flashbacks of Aquarius and Cancer dolling her up before one of her father's functions. The redhead failed to notice the shallow state of the newcomer's breathing.

"And you were able to win first prize at First Light as your first-ever guild job to boot. Quite impressive. A new talent like you might be just the thing we need to get these lazy bums off their butts and back into jobs. Recently it seems some of them have lost sight of what it truly means to be a member of Fairy Tail."

"You might wanna let the girl talk, Erza." Natsu could feel his partner's anxiety rising.

"Oh, right you are, Natsu. My apologies, Lucy. I'm done, anyway. What do you think?" Erza patted the girl on the shoulder, handing her a small hand mirror from her bag.

Any reminder of life on the estate was knocked out of the blonde when she looked into the mirror. In that small amount of time, Erza managed to give Lucy a sultry and dangerous look, much different from anything Aquarius would have allowed. The dark purple lipstick and thick black lashes felt like a mask, a device to hide behind and be something other than herself. While others might feel untrue to themselves, Lucy felt guarded and confident. "I love it."

"I'm glad," Erza smiled, "Now we should get going soon. Our train leaves in twenty minutes."

"Train?" Natsu asked, desperation in his voice, "You didn't say we would be taking a train?"

"How else would we get to Oshibana, Natsu?" Erza stood and turned to face the pinkette, voice filled with unspoken threats and daggers pouring from her eyes. Natsu jumped to hide behind Lucy, grabbing her shoulders to shield himself from the beast of a woman. Lucy, who was just standing from her seated position, is thrown off balance and nearly falls to the ground before an armored hand steadies her.

"Lucy, it looks like you have an odd scratch on your neck. Did something happen?" Erza steadies the heiress, running a finger over a red mark on the back of her neck.

Pulling an arm free from Natsu, Lucy quickly covers the mark, heart pounding.

"That was my fault," Natsu feigned sheepishness, "I got too excited when we won last weekend and accidentally scratched her."

"Ah," Erza hummed, "Well I would advise against harming your own partner, Natsu."

"What did Flame Brain do this time?" Gray appeared by the door once again, a smirk resting on his face hinting at his amusement sparked by the idea of Natsu's folly.

"Shut your mouth, Freezy." Natsu shot back.

"Boys, boys. I thought he had resolved your differences last time I was home. I better not hear you two are causing trouble for each other." Erza's aura of destruction returned.

Natsu and Gray glanced at each other before linking their arms and reluctantly answering, "Aye."

"That's more like it." The redhead clammed again. "Now how about the two of you hug it out."

The two men froze, looking at their older sister-figure with fear-widened eyes. When neither flexed a muscle to move, Erza grabbed a man with each arm, crushing them to her body in a group hug. "This is more like it guys. Feel the camaraderie." The redhead let out a deep breath, torturing her brothers with each second she kept them in the embrace. Neither had made any effort to return the hug. One second later, the redhead's eyes reopened quickly, irises glowing with a dangerous tint. "Gray, what exactly am I smelling on you?"

The hug fell apart, Natsu quickly jumping away to hide behind a confused Lucy yet again. Gray wasn't so lucky. He had tried to make for the door, yet Erza's grip remained on his forearm. Sweat soaked into his headband, his free arm tugging at his jacket as he itched to remove it. How was he going to escape this time? Erza had always been a stickler for what's right. Vices to her were a sign of weakness.

Long red bangs covered her eyes as she faced the ink-haired male. Her voice serious as the grave as she spoke, "Give them to me, Gray."

"Are you serious?" Gray argued half-heartedly.

"Serious as _lung disease_."

Lucy whispered to Natsu under her breath, "What is going on?"

Gray sighed in annoyance, free hand reaching into his pocket and pulling out his pack of Newports. Erza motioned a hand out, ready to accept the small package which Gray handed her reluctantly. Understanding flashed across Lucy's eyes for a moment before she witnessed what happened next. Natsu hid his head behind her back in wait.

Erza let go of Gray. Shaking her head, she walks over to the wall. It happened quickly, one hand holding the small box to the wall while the other reached into her boot and removed a butterfly knife. Snapping it open with practiced precision, the sharp blade cut straight through the box's contents with little resistance, rendering the product unusable.

 _Well, shit._

"Now, shall we all head to the train station?"

* * *

"Erza, why did you have to knock him out? Now I'm stuck dragging his big butt around all night." Gray asked, his voice strained by the hefty load of his gear combined with Natsu's unconscious body.

"His groaning was simply unbearable. It was the only way to silence him." Titania replied free of remorse, dragging behind her a cart carrying an obscene amount of luggage. "I would offer to help, but as you can see I've got my arms full, as well."

"Yeah, full of stuff no one needs." The black-haired male mumbled lowly.

"What was that, Gray?" Erza stopped in her tracks for a moment, shooting a death glare at the man who dared speak back to her. Gray ignored her and continued forward, attempting to cover the noise with a whistle.

"If you're having trouble with the load, I can help carry a few things for you." Lucy offered from the back of the caravan, her only cargo being her and Natsu's guitars and her personal bag.

Gray looked back at her the best he could, flashing her a smile before responding. "Nah, we aren't too far from the venue. Thanks, though." He turned back, giving Natsu's body a small shake and yelling, "Although, this could all be fixed if a certain jackass would just wake up!" The pinkette simply smacked his lips together, a small drop of drool landing on Gray's jacket. "Oh, when you wake up you are so dead."

"Behave yourself, Gray. We are just about here." Erza walked ahead, only to stop in front of a eerie looking structure on the corner of the street. Gray and Lucy followed slowly behind, a bit intimidated by the large stone building's decrepit state. The mansion stood tall above the other houses, with dark tiles and a large clock set in it's singular tower. A stone wall surrounded the whole property, with only an arch allowing entry. A plaque engraved on the wall read, "EISENWALD."

" _This_ is the Eisenwald guild hall?" Gray questioned.

"Indeed." Erza responded. "You two wait here with the gear; I'll go in and find out where we need to enter and set up." The armored woman approached the door and knocked. A man dressed as an Egyptian pharaoh opened the door and led her in, instantly conversing.

"That's it, I gotta put him down." Gray slumped Natsu's body off of his own, propping the other man up against the wall and proceeding to stretch his arms. "Man, that feels much better."

Lucy allowed herself to lean against the wall as well, "Gray?"

"Hmm?"

"Is she always like that?" The girl asked.

Gray dropped a bag from his shoulders, sneaking a cigarette he had hidden in the cuff of his boot and giving it a light. "Who? Erza? Pretty much. She's always about doing things 'properly' and 'following the rules,' yet she tends to go about in a strange way."

"You can say that again," Lucy commented, remembering the way she wielded a knife without batting an eye.

"I can promise you it doesn't mean she's a cold person. She's just been through her share of stuff. Erza's helped me out more times than I can count. She's like a scary older sister." Gray sighed, enjoying the peaceful moment and the feeling of nicotine entering his bloodstream.

The two waited in silence for a few minutes, Gray prodding Natsu's motionless form with his foot. An onyx eye slowly blinked open as a limousine pulled up to the street directly in front of them.

"What's taking Erza so long? It looks like the happy couple just arrived." Gray wondered aloud.

"Wha-da? Where 'm m-I?" Natsu raised a hand to his pounding head, eyes frantically searching the surrounding area. "'his place is creepy."

A few feet away, a smiling man with a black tux exited the far side of the vehicle, running a hand to smooth over his short gray hair before opening the near door for his other half. _Oh yeah, the wedding gig._ Natsu watched the interaction, his mind still hazy from his unwanted sleep. A black haired male in a white tux jumped out of the car, happily pouncing upon the other and tackling him to the ground.

Natsu's mind jumped into overdrive. He swiftly hopped to his feet, closing the distance in seconds. Before anyone could tell what happened, Natsu held the man in the white tux against the car, his collar wrinkled by the pinkette's tight fist.

"What do you think you're doing?" the Salamander asked, his eyes burning embers of coal. The black haired man under him turning pale with fear.

"NATSU!" At the sound of the redhead's voice, Natsu's shoulders slumped. Still, he turned to defend his actions.

"This man was assaulting the groom!" He shouted, his eyes never leaving those of his pray.

"Natsu, that man _is_ the groom." Erza replied, hastily making her way to detach the dragon-boy from the man he attacked.

Dumbfounded, the pinkette turned to the man in the black tuxedo, pointing his finger directly at him. "Then who is this guy?"

"That man is also the groom." Erza straighten up the victim, brushing a bit of dirt from his suit.

"Wha- huh?" Natsu looked between them quizzically. Gray facepalmed from behind the situation.

"Everyone, this man here is Kageyama," Erza introduced the man dressed in white, "and there is his new husband, Erigor." She motioned to the man dressed in black.

"Ooooh." Natsu droned, putting all the pieces together for a moment before summoning one of his trademark smiles and pushing a handshake towards each man, "Sorry about that! I'm Natsu Dragneel, it's good to meet you both!"

Kageyama and Erigor met his handshake and chuckled, "It's alright," Kageyama spoke. "I had heard that Fairy Tail's Salamander could be a little impulsive." Natsu's smile dropped slightly. "Thank you for attempting to protect my husband."

"Natsu," Erigor repeated the name, "You're lucky he's not hurt or I would have killed you."

"Kageyama," Erza greeted, "Erigor. It is a pleasure to see you two again. I am happy I am able to help you celebrate your big day."

"We're so happy you took time out of your busy schedule to come help us out." Kageyama expressed gratefully.

"Nonsense. Now that you have met Natsu let me introduce the rest of my team. Over here we have the talented percussionist Gray Fullbuster as well as the newest member of our guild, Lucy Ashley." Gray greeted the couple with an upward nod while Lucy gave a small wave. "Now, if all of you would allow me, we should go set up."

The gang headed into the building through the back door, their amount of luggage no longer a problem now that Natsu had joined the world of the living again. They set up their equipment, patiently waiting for the procession of guests, dressed in all kinds of costumes, to arrive and seat themselves before Erza made her way to mic and to act as the emcee for the evening. The redhead followed wedding tradition of introducing the the whole wedding party before making the grand introduction of the finally wedded 'Mr. and Mr. Dispellier-Shinigemi'.

The best man and 'man-of-honor' made their speeches, cake was cut, and food and drinks were served, allowing the guests to get properly lubricated before the music started and everyone began dancing.

"Good evening, everyone. As an added treat for you tonight, a couple of my friends from Fairy Tail and I have prepared a couple songs to play. Granted, our guild may not be the die-hard fans of heavy metal you all take pride in being, but I believe the set we have for you will more or less aid in the celebration of Erigor and Kageyama's love." A few drunkards in the crowd gave a shout of excitement. "Allow us to introduce ourselves."

The remaining three Fairy Tail members made their way to their instruments. "On lead guitar we have the roaring fire dragon himself, the Salamander." Applause went off as Natsu shedded a quick solo on his flame-decorated guitar. "On drums is our own icey pirate king, Gray Fullbuster." Another round of cheers met with the sound of Gray slamming a beat. "On rhythm we have our newest little fairy, Lucy Ashley." Lucy strummed a bit as a few drunk men shouted and some women clapped politely. "And of course, I, Titania, your humble knight will be set with the task of serenade." The crowd exploded into shouts and applause, welcoming the Queen of the Fairies to her stage.

The quartet kicked into a number of fun and fast songs to set the tone of the party. Although they had been forced to practice the set without her, Erza's performance fit perfectly into the space she filled. Lucy fought against her nerves, not quite as drawn into the performance as the first time she was on stage. Yet, she knew she had to get used to it. If she was really going to do this music-career thing, she had to get used to playing even when conditions weren't perfect.

To an extent she was amazed she was even doing this. Standing on stage performing a set for a crowd full of happy people. She had even put on a costume, talk about out of her comfort zone. She had been so nervous about the job that she hadn't slept in two days. Still, she had told herself it would be okay. She was with Natsu, who always helped her even when she deserved none. And Gray, who also shared his care and generosity. Of course she had just met Erza, but given the way the woman has earned the respect of anyone who has met her, she had to be trustworthy.

There was nothing to fear: she was with guildmates, _friends_.

A few feet away, Natsu stood fighting with himself to focus on his guitar. Normally this action would have been easy, but truth be told he was unable to take his eyes off his partner. This was only their second job and her first time playing a whole set. He would be lying if he said he wasn't worried about how she was handling the situation. Truth be told, she seemed like she was doing just fine, but it wasn't enough to come to that conclusion on his own. His flaw before was that he wasn't observant enough. He wouldn't let that happen again.

Part way into their fifth song, Natsu was so obsessed with watching Lucy and keeping up his performance at the same time that he lost track of his footing and ended up tripping backwards and falling over onto some sound equipment. The quality of the noise fell as mics dropped out and the sound of the stings turned empty.

The pinkette hardly breathed, "Fuck."

It took a moment for Gray to notice and stop drumming. The team of Fairy Tail musicians turned to Natsu in confusion and shock.

"My apologies, everyone," Erza shouted to the crowd, "It looks like we have some technical difficulties. Please excuse us for a moment."

"More like the salamander has some leg difficulties!" One drunk yelled back from the crowd.

Erza helps Natsu up, unstrapping his guitar as the two step over to the soundboard. Lucy and Gray follow not far behind.

"What did you do, Ash Breath?"

"Shut it, Ice Dick. I just tripped." Natsu did his best to keep his composure. Truth be told he felt like the biggest idiot in Fiore.

"Natsu Dragneel, you must be the biggest idiot in all of Ishgar." Erza spoke with a quiet rage from behind her bangs.

"It's a shame to interrupt the celebration," Lucy commented, looking back at the crowd. "Couldn't we play a song from the computer while we set it back up?"

Erza opened the laptop which sat next to the soundboard on a folding table. "It looks like the loss of power triggered an automatic reboot."

The gang stood in silence for a moment, collecting their thoughts and energies before jumping into action.

"You have your acoustic, Lucy. Why don't you go entertain them with a song?" Erza suggested, looking at the blonde with a sweet smile. "Natsu and I will get your guitar plugged in as soon as possible. Won't we, Natsu?" The redhead turned to Natsu with a promise of death in her eyes.

The pinkette gulped, "Aye."

Lucy stood there in shock for a moment. _Play a song? Alone? For all those people?_

"G-Gray could back me up, right?" She turned to the drummer and hatched a plan, "We could do Lazy Eye and you could play a soft beat underneath?" She wished it hadn't come out like a question.

"Sounds fine to me." Gray offered a grin and reassuring pat on the shoulder. "What do you think Titania?"

"Excellent idea, Lucy. Now you two get out there and play."

Lucy took a deep breath before turning back towards the main stage. _I can do this._

 _I hope._

Slinging her guitar back around her body, she spoke to the crowd. "Good evening everyone. While they're working on fixing up our equipment, I'm going to play you a little song. Now, this song was written by Fairy Tail's ultra-talented songwriting trio, Shadow Gear, and has only been performed once or twice by Titania herself. It's about the anticipation of waiting to lock eyes with one you love. This song, of course, goes out to Erigor and Kageyama."

 **~Cue "Lazy Eye" by Silversun Pickups~**

Natsu and Erza look up from their task for a moment, amazed that she knew the history behind the song, as well as the meaning Levy wrote behind it. The fairy nervously began strumming, focusing hard on remembering the chords she had learned just a few days ago. Gray bobbed his head to the music, measuring the rhythm before his cue arrived.

 **I've been waiting.**

 **I've been waiting for this moment all my life,**

 **but it's not quite right.**

Lucy's voice shook a little, detached from the power of performance without the atmosphere of dimmed lights and loud speakers. The crowd simply listened, a few beginning to nod along to the catchy beat. The blonde did her best not to focus on the eyes following her with expectation.

 **And this real...**

 **It's impossible, if possible, at who's blind word.**

 **So clear but so unheard.**

The sound of the guitar grew deeper as her acoustic became electrified. The lack of hallow sound worked to improve the singer's courage. _Come on, Lucy. This is your job, get your head together. This is what you always wanted._

 **I've been waiting.**

Erza's synthesizer rang to life. The redhead left Natsu to continue maintenance while she joined the performance, adding the perfect background tones to fill the atmosphere of the room. The resonance of sound gripped the crowd as Eisenwald members began swaying to the melody.

 **I've been waiting for this silence all night long.**

 **It's just a matter of time.**

 _Let's go, fingers; keep moving. Voice, keep projecting. Strength, don't leave me now._

 **To appear sad,**

 **with that same old decent lazy eye, fixed to rest on you.**

 **Aim free but so untrue.**

Lucy looked around the room again, glad to see the guild showing more response. She was no Titania, but she wanted to do her best. Her eyes eventually landed back on Natsu, relief tingling through her body as she watched the man make his way back to his guitar.

 **Everyone's so intimately rearranged.**

 **Everyone's so focused clearly with such shine.**

With the addition of Natsu's specially chosen tones, the song was now free to create the dreamy atmosphere it called out for. As he brought his Dunlop Tortex pick to meet with nylon and copper wire, the pinkette angled his head up to meet the gaze of his partner. The determined smirk that stretched his lips spoke volumes to her.

 **Everyone's so intimately rearranged.**

 _C'mon Luce, show 'em what you got._

 **Everyone's so focused clearly with such shine.**

With her drive returned, Lucy closed her eyes and threw herself into the song with abandon. Erza's voice joined the other, resounding through the hall, leaving no space free from the vibration of their soundwaves. The entire guild became encapsulated, as if all the world ceased to exist within one singular moment.

 **Lost and loaded.**

 **Still the same old decent lazy eye, straight through your gaze.**

 **That's why I said I relate.**

 **I said we relate. It's so fun to relate.**

The tension broke, giving away to a wave of peace. Nervous energy gave away, yet the blonde's heart failed to calm. It seemed to move freely within her, easily tugged and squeezed in a pain so comfortable.

 **It's the room, the sun, and the sky.**

 **The room, the sun, and the sky.**

The sound sank into her being, each tone peppering goosebumps on her skin. Every beat of the drums was a jolt, every sound from a string was an electric pulse firing at the synapses of her brain. Her body was hers to control, but her heart was lost. It belonged to the music.

As Natsu's solo grew closer, her eyes refused to leave his form. His fingers moved frantically, yet each drag against the nylon felt was matched with jerk of her heartstrings. Finally, lids curtained the windows of her eyes as the girl conceded all that was left of herself over to the resonance that he created.

 _This_ was freedom. _This_ is what it means to be alive.

 _This_ gives life meaning.

Her shaking hands continued their work off instinct, pure adrenaline running through her veins, threatening to carry her soul out of body. Never before had music gripped her so tightly, taking complete control. She was numb to the world, a slave to the vibrations created by some callous fingers and a tortex pick.

In this breath of time, her past lost all gravity. Her origin lost all license. Her malady lost all privilege.

All of a sudden, as if standing on the bars of that bridge in Hargeon, Lucy found herself jumping all in. Yet, instead of meeting the stinging slap of frigid waves, there was nothing but warmth in all directions. Just a beautiful, glistening sea of eternal _summer._

 **I've been waiting.**

Every eye fell on the golden-haired guitarist, captured in the rapture of her surrender. As she threw her head back and sang her closing verse to the heavens, the light which sparked through her budded in her heart and grew to flourish from the garden of her lips.

 _She was shining._

 **I've been waiting for this moment.**

As Lazy Eye finished it's last chord, the crowd erupted into thunderous cheers. Kageyama let go of Erigor for a brief moment to wipe a stray tear from his eye, whispering to his husband, " _This_ is why we hired Fairy Tail to play our wedding."

The quartet finished off their setlist without any other interruptions, yielding their time to a special playlist made of lovey-dovey songs Eisenwald had put together for the end of the event. True, the slow numbers were shocking given the guild's inclination towards metal music, but the open bar averted all complaints.

Numerous guests approached the FT members, asking if the "technical difficulties" had been a plan to increase the atmosphere and drama of the song, almost to refusing to believe their denial.

Lucy's body still buzzed, full of the voltage accumulated by the power of the music. While the others had settled into the crowd, dancing and drinking, the blonde made her way out the back door to get away from the army of bodies and bustle of the party. Leaning against a wooden support beam on the back porch, the fairy wrapped her arms around her torso and closed her eyes. She hummed to herself softly, relishing in the high the music gave her.

As she stood there, pondering the amazing way a melody can make all the world feel right, she missed the sound of the door opening and a body moving to join her.

"Hey." A gentle voice called to her, the blonde didn't have to turn around to recognize the owner as her partner.

"Hey." She returned.

"Just getting some fresh air?" Natsu half-expected her to remain silent.

"Yeah." Her voice was steady, calm. She turned to look at him as he motioned to stand beside her, looking out into the night. "You did a great job out there, Natsu."

The pinkette looked down at her, a bit taken aback by the return of her typical behavior. Met with the sincerness of her gaze, he smiled. "You were amazing, Luce. Thanks for coming with me tonight."

The blonde nodded, settling her eyes back on tracing shapes in the sky. A relaxed silence fell between them.

"Luce," Natsu paused for a moment before gaining the resolve to continue. "I'm sorry if I was a little out of line the other night. I probably shouldn't have _cuddled_ you like that. Honestly, I was just trying to help. I don't want you to think I was trying to take advantage of the situation or anything."

"Natsu-"

"Wait, let me finish. You just joined the guild and I know you're going through a lot. Last thing I want to do is make things uncomfortable for you, especially as your partner. I just want to help you, you know?"

"Natsu-"

"I mean, I can understand why you're mad. I probably should have just left the pillow between us. We had only known each other for a week and there I go jumping into bed with you. Well, I mean you had asked me to stay, but you were in a vulnerable condition I guess-"

"Natsu." Lucy laid a hand on his bare bicep, again surprised to find his skin so warm despite the October chill. "I'm not mad at you."

"You're not?" His pink brows furrowed in confusion.

"No. You really helped me that night. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't miraculously showed up. I really want to say thank you."

"You do?"

"Yes. In all honesty, I'm just a bit embarrassed. All of this 'friend' stuff is new to me." Lucy wrapped her arms around herself yet again, turning to look away from the boy as she continued. "I've had these... issues... for a long time. I've caused myself a lot of harm over the years, but I've never felt as free as I do when we play music together. As I do now."

Natsu's at a complete loss for words; a muffled voice in his brain telling him he should feel warmed by her words, while one only slightly louder told him to keep his distance.

"You keep apologizing to me, but truth be told that was the best sleep I have had in ten years. I agree it's rather odd for two people who barely know each other to share a bed like that. Other girls might have kicked you out or screamed at you, but... you really helped me. I... I want to try it again. I think it could be good for me."

 _Try it... again?_

"I think _you_ could be good for me."

 _I'm fucked._

* * *

 **A/N:** Just to clarify a few things, I don't think "Bunny Girl" is as endearing as many fan fics make it out to be. Gajeel is basically just calling Lucy a "Playboy Bunny". Also, I made up the last names "Dispellier" and "Shinigemi" for Kageyama and Erigor as a play on the fact that Kageyama is a dispeller and Erigor calls himself the Grim Reaper (Shinigami). Last, before any Silversun Pickups fans try to cause a debate, I am following one interpretation of the song (used in the music video).

I hope you liked this chapter! Be sure to review and tell me your favorite part!

If you haven't already, please check out my newest Playboy!Natsu College AU story Anyone He Wants.

 **Summary:** _For the longest time, Lucy Heartfilia was sure there was nothing she would change about her life. Yet, when her last hope for love fails her, Lucy finds the answer to her dilemma might just lie with her playboy roommate and best friend, Natsu Dragneel: the man who can get any woman he wants. But why doesn't he want her? M for Language._

I hopefully see you all again in a few days for Nalu Week 2017 bonus prompt Video Games.

Follow me on tumblr ( **fair-ophelia** ) for sneak peaks, FT Grunge Aesthetic Boards, updates on my writing, and many Fairy Tail and other manga/anime related posts! Thank you all so much for your support and putting up with my inconsistent updates! Ganbarimasu!

zerOphelia


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